This article was written when I was a claims attorney for ALPS (Attorney Liability Protection Society). It was an ALPS Risk Management article for the ALPS website, February 2003. Great advice for anyone, not just attorneys.
Pay Attention to Detail by Alain Burrese
Before my University studies and law school, I served in
the United States Army, and taught at the 2nd
As a claims attorney for
Gunnery Sgt. Carlos Hathcock is one of the most well known snipers from the Vietnam War. I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to speak with him and discuss things before he passed away in 1999. In our personal discussions, and in interviews and presentations, Carlos always said that a sniper’s most important attribute is paying attention to detail. Carlos is among many who attribute paying attention to details as an element to success, including Miyamoto Musashi, the Japanese Sword-saint, who wrote A Book of Five Rings in 1645. Musashi wrote, “Pay attention even to trifles.” And throughout his long military career, General George S. Patton never once lowered his standards or his microscopic attention to the smallest detail, helping him earn the reputation of being the Allied general the Germans most feared and respected.
We all understand that paying attention to detail is important, I doubt I will find much argument that it’s not. So why then are so many mistakes and errors made due to inattention to details? The reasons are probably as varied as there are attorneys, but here are a few of the more common reasons and some suggestions on how you can minimize errors due to them, and pay more attention to detail.
Being
Disorganized
Disorganization can cause you to overlook, miss or completely forget many details. Being disorganized can lead you to feel terror as you uncover from the pile of papers on your desk the document that needed to be filed a week, or maybe a month ago, but has been buried, and thus forgotten, for an even greater length of time. Being disorganized creates undue stress for you and everyone in the office, as you frantically search for some misplaced file or document that you need for the meeting, deposition, or court appearance that started five minutes ago.
Organization is one key to an efficient practice. Having an organized practice, organized office and organized desk will help you pay attention to details and not let things slip through the cracks when they become lost or misplaced. I do not have the space here to go into depth on organization strategies, so I encourage you to seek out one or more of the numerous resources on this topic. Many of the tips and tactics on organization and time management can help you pay more attention to detail, and can help you increase your bottom line. Reducing the likelihood of claims and increasing income are pretty good reasons to become more organized -- and the excuse of, “I would, but I just don’t have time,” just doesn’t cut it. If any part of your desk, office or practice is disorganized, make the time to get it under control. Your time investment will yield increased productivity and efficiency, and lower stress levels.
Poor Systems
Another maxim we used in sniper training was, “accuracy is the product of uniformity.” I think the same applies regarding accuracy in your office. Client screening, conflict checks, calendar entry and other tasks must be completed with each new matter that comes into the office. Having a uniform system that ensures accuracy and prevents the errors leading to malpractice claims – for example, missed statute of limitations, conflict of interest, and other similar avoidable suits – is more than worth the time and cost to implement such a system. Modern computer software makes it much easier to have an advanced system. However, you still must ensure that your office staff is using these systems. You should devise a uniform way of handling each matter in your office so that nothing falls through the cracks. The one that falls through the cracks inevitably will rear its ugly head later, to create a problem that you could have easily avoided.
Systems will vary among attorneys, and which system you use is not as important as actually using the system. The bottom line is that uniformity helps you pay attention to detail. And yes, you can improve a bad system. You should evaluate your current systems to see if you can improve them by paying better attention to them, or maybe through advanced technology.
Familiarity
Often, the things with which we are most familiar are the things about which we get careless. In our first job after law school and the bar exam, we pay attention to every little detail of each matter. We are afraid that if we don’t, we will sink our newly founded solo practice, or even worse, we will incite the wrath of a senior partner and get booted from our first associate position. As time passes we gain experience, and we become more and more familiar with the type of law we are practicing. With this familiarity sometimes comes a lesser degree of attention. After years of experience, you can do this in your sleep, right?
Unfortunately, the attorney lulled into complacency by this “routine work” sometimes fails to pay attention when it’s needed most. It’s easy enough to say, “another MVA case, calendar it for X years,” only to realize too late that this particular MVA involved a State vehicle and was governed by a shorter SOL. Each matter deserves your utmost attention, no matter how many times you have done similar work.
Conclusion
Three basic steps can help make your practice more
efficient and less stressful: (1) organizing your desk, office and practice; (2)
implementing uniform systems to ensure accuracy; and (3) avoiding
inattentiveness due to familiarity and routine work.
These steps also can reduce your exposure to malpractice.
Best of all, the increased efficiency can help improve your firm’s
bottom line. You don’t need to be
in the military, stalking through the woods in a ghillie suit with a sniper
rifle, to benefit from the sound advice of “Pay Attention to Detail.”