Individual Case Review Meetings with Each Associate : You should meet with each associate once a month to review their case lists . With your case management systems in place , you and each associate should be able to run case status reports to assist in this review . Review each file and determine if they have questions or need help on cases not advancing through your firm ’ s pipeline . Remember that people respect what you inspect . Just like staff , your associates need to know that you are reviewing what they are doing and making yourself available to give them the help , advice , and support they need to succeed . Note : These case review meetings shouldn ’ t last more than 2 – 3 hours each but are important for effective firm management . If you don ’ t want to conduct the reviews yourself , assign this management role to a head attorney in your firm who can manage the associates . Although I conducted these reviews myself in my law firms , many firms have a designated senior attorney whose only job is to manage the lawyers . It is important to ensure that your associates are getting the help they need and that you are aware of how the cases are being handled / developed and resolved .
Immediate Feedback with Criticism and Affirmation : Most young lawyers thrive on affirmation and benefit from constructive criticism . Give feedback as immediately as you can . Affirm in public and criticize in private whenever possible .
Conclusion Associates are critical to your firm ’ s growth and success , but they cannot manage themselves . Make time to implement the management strategies above . You will have happier ( and more productive ) associates and a higher associate retention rate — as well as more satisfied clients , higher settlement values , and fewer bottlenecks in your firm ’ s caseload pipeline . The benefits you will experience from more effective associate management far exceed the time you spend putting these measures in place !
* Scan the QR Code below to download a copy of my free sample Associate ’ s Manual . This is the exact manual I used when managing associates in my law firms , and I ’ m happy to share it with you ! Feel free to reach out to me at ken @ pilmma . org if you have questions .
14 x The Trial Lawyer