2.5 Working with difficult clients
It’s the way clients speak to you. Certainly in family law they have a lot of problems, which is why they are in the situations they’re in, but the abuse and the aggression and the difficulties you have is horrendous sometimes to cope with.
I think sometimes in private practice you just feel like you’re at the complete beck and call of the client, and if your colleagues are also feeding into that it can feel really lonely, so [it’s good] to have supportive people that understand that it can be difficult.
Most, if not all, legal professionals will work with difficult clients at some stage in their career. This could include clients with unrealistic expectations, clients who are rude and aggressive and clients who refuse to accept appropriate legal advice.
An important starting point is to assess why a client is being difficult. A client whose demands stem from being highly upset and feeling out of control in a difficult situation may need different treatment than a client who assumes they are entitled to certain treatment because of their financial position. Therefore, it is important to read both the verbal and non-verbal cues the client is demonstrating to assess the underlying emotions and feelings driving their behaviour. This can involve demonstrating empathy (see ‘Using empathy in communication with clients’) despite feeling frustrated or even angry with the client.
The table below shows some potential underlying causes that could be prompting difficult behaviours from a client, and highlights possible approaches to take to tackle this.
| Cause | Behaviour | Possible approaches |
|---|---|---|
| Lack of understanding of the role of a legal professional and their relationship with their client |
|
|
| Stress and anxiety over legal matter |
|
|
| Client struggling with lack of control over legal issue |
|
|
| Client with unrealistically high expectations |
|
|
If a client makes a complaint about your work, it is likely that there are procedures already in place you can follow to deal with it. These tips may assist if you are required to respond and/or continue a relationship with the client:
- Be courteous and polite at all times – The more you feel frustrated, upset or angry, the more care you need to take not to display this.
- Reflect on the complaint – When someone appears to be criticising your work, a common response is to be defensive and put forward your own version of events. However, legal professionals are not infallible, so you do need to consider whether you have in any way caused or inflamed the situation. If so, use the experience to help you learn and grow by reflecting on what you can do differently in future.
- Do not try to ignore or cover-up the complaint – It is important to follow the procedures that are in place and to be open with your line manager and/or others involved. Realistically, most legal professionals will receive a number of complaints during their career, so it is not something that should be stigmatised.
- If you are self-employed, you may feel you have no one to discuss the issue with – Remember, most regulatory bodies have some form of helpline for such ethical issues. It may be useful to look at building networks with other self-employed legal professionals so you can provide each other with mutual support when issues such as this arise.
2.4 Establishing emotional boundaries with clients