Stuff I learned from attorney Jerome Karam

The relationship between an attorney and his client may often come under a lot of pressure during the course of a lawsuit. Your litigation experience can significantly be affected by how well you manage your relationship with your lawyer. A relaxed working relationship will usually add up towards a positive outcome of the trial, and may reduce the anxiety down to a bearable level. My working relationship with Jerome Karam was very good, because I followed a set of simple principles.

Keep your lawyer up to date with information

From the very moment I hired Jerome Karam, I was sure that he and his staff were informed of all facts that could have pertained to my dispute. I handed them over all documents and items I deemed relevant – police records, medical bills, communication with the former employer and all that. If you aren’t sure whether a certain fact or document is of importance, let your attorney decide that. It’s better to be safe than sorry.

Your lawyer should be trained to skim through huge piles of information and determine what’s relevant and what is not. And – this is a key fact – your lawyer may be able to use a document or a fact that you thought was irrelevant as the basis to create a legal argument.

Also, if the information you are going to supply is going to harm your case, your lawyer will then have plenty of time to prepare for defensive maneuvers. I didn’t have such information to hand over to Jerome Karam, which made my case somewhat simpler.

Prepare materials carefully

At the beginning of a lawsuit, your lawyer is going to ask you to write down the important facts or summaries of events that lead up to the lawsuit. My Jerome Karam and his colleagues requested this information in various forms – sometimes they asked me for a timeline, other times for a detailed summary, and other times simply for a few notes. Regardless of what your attorney asks for, always ensure that what you put down in writing is accurate. Your lawyer is going to base your claims and ground your whole case on this information.

Search thoroughly for documents and requested data

During the course of the lawsuit, your attorney is going to ask you to provide a certain document or explain certain facts related to an important matter. Remember, it’s your information and your documents we are talking about – your attorney doesn’t probably have any access to this kind of information. Do your best to answer these requests accurately.

Respond to your lawyer's requests as soon as possible

During my lawsuit, Jerome Karam often had to work under some tight deadlines. The more time you allow your attorney to analyze the information you provide, the better the job he or she can do with using that information to prepare relevant legal papers. If you can’t provide a timely response, at least let your attorney know about the delays as soon as possible, so that he or she can think of alternatives. Your lawyer might be able to ask for an extension, or somehow bring other matters into focus in order to accommodate the delay.

Keep your lawyer up to date with your schedule

There are certain meetings and hearings during the course of a lawsuit in which you are required to participate. Most of the time, such events are scheduled weeks or even months in advance. Some of them can be postponed or move up to accommodate your schedule, but your attorney needs to know well in advance when you are and when you are not available. However, you should be prepared to change plans if you must – judges sometimes insist on holding important hearings on a particular date, whether you can join them or not.

Since I didn’t have a job at that moment, Jerome Karam’s job was a bit easier with me, because I was always available.