For Other Attorneys

For Opposing Counsel

Welcome! We look forward to working with you to advance the matter between your client and our client toward a resolution that is just and fair, efficient, and if possible, amicable. We mean that.

We know that lawyers will often scout out some background on opposing counsel with whom they are newly coming into contact, so let us tell you a little something about ourselves. We are straight shooters and we keep our word. We are committed not only to the Rules of Professional Responsibility but also to the principles of the Creed of Professionalism and similar codes of professional courtesy and civility. As just one simple example, we will be slow to request an extension of time from you but quick to grant your request for one if we can. We are not “scorched earth” litigators, but we are tenacious and thorough; we presume you are, too.

We see no inconsistency between a commitment to professionalism and civility and our duty to zealously represent our client, or as that duty is phrased in the comments to the Arizona ethical rules, “to take whatever lawful and ethical measures are required to vindicate a client’s cause or endeavor.”

On Giving Referrals

Obviously we do not cover every field of law, and conflicts do occasionally arise. We therefore have occasion to give referrals to other competent, high-quality legal professionals, and we consider the giving of successful referrals as part of our service to clients and the community. We are always looking to fill out in new and different practice areas our lists of good referrals for those who ask.

Where it can be maintained ethically and it makes logical sense to do, we will consider bringing in new counsel for joint representation and responsibility under a fee-sharing arrangement. Other times we prefer to simply refer a client or potential client over to a practitioner who we feel confident will render professional services of such high quality that the client thinks well of us for making the referral. If you are on our referral list you will be good, and by that we mean, good to the client. You must be competent if not excellent, cost-efficient and value-conscious, and with a feel for clients’ best interests such that we can feel confident anyone we send over is in good hands. Our rule of thumb for giving referrals can be summed up simply enough: Would we feel comfortable coming to you with our own personal matters, and when the representation is through, win or lose, would we be satisfied and glad we came to you?

On Accepting Referrals

Our policy on accepting referrals is much like our policy on giving them. Where ethically permitted and logically justified, we will entertain joint representation and responsibility on a shared-fee basis. However, more often we look simply to take good care of people sent over to us by other practitioners. In accepting a referral we are grateful for the professional confidence and courtesy demonstrated by the referral, and also commit ourselves to providing the referred clients with such high-quality services that it reflects favorably on the attorney who referred them.

Links to Legal Service Providers

It helps to know who can help. If you are new to or visiting the Phoenix legal market, or just looking around for good providers of legal support services, here are a few companies we have worked with and would recommend.

Couriers

DL Investigations & Attorney Support, LLC
Running things all over the place

Deposition Reporters

Griffin & Associates, LLC
Filling up the pages of life, twenty-five lines at a time

Technology Services

Keyed Communications, LLC
Our own IT needs have now moved in a different direction, but for many years these folks provided us with, as they call it, “management free technology” through their NexStep platform – great for solos and smaller firms

Crexendo, Inc.
Our answer to The Phone Company – “VoIP” is more than just the sound a dripping faucet makes