Presented at the Nassau County Bar Association on September 21, 2016
On Sept. 21, partner, Tom Foley, and his colleague, matrimonial attorney, James Joseph, presented a continuing legal education (CLE) program to fellow attorneys at the Nassau County Bar Association. The focus of this presentation was to assist the attorneys in their client selection process. First and foremost, the attorneys were advised that they should implement a formal intake process to aid in the selection of profitable client matters. Second, the attorneys should have a system in place to ensure that the legal matter entrusted to them remains profitable during the pendency of the case. Finally, the attorneys were given instruction on how to ethically remove themselves from cases that are no longer profitable, or unlikely to be successful for the client.
In the area of personal injury, the practice specialty of attorney Tom Foley, Tom discussed the three most critical components to a successful personal injury claim. Those three elements are: liability, damages and insurance. Any successful personal injury claim has clear liability in favor of the client; damages above the limits required by law; as well as insurance available to pay if the claim is successful. If the attorney knows in advance that one of those elements are missing, the attorney should not select the case. Tom advised the attendees to use this type of analysis in their areas of practice in determining the ideal client matters to take.