What Nonlegal Tasks Have Clients Asked You to Perform for Them?
Image from Shutterstock.
Last week, one of the Westlaw Insider blog’s headnotes of the day was from Cincinnati Bar Assn. v. Alsfelder, 816 N.E.2d 218 (Ohio 2004):
“Although attorney has a duty to assist his client in making informed decisions, a process that often implicates nonlegal considerations, attorney may not serve in a self-appointed role as a paraclete, comforter, helper, or hand-holder, under the guise of legal services and at a lawyer’s compensation rate.”
But sometimes, a lawyer who wants only to provide legal services is asked by a client to devote time to a task of some sort that is not the practice of law. So this week, we’d like to ask you: What nonlegal tasks have clients asked you to perform for them? Did you do as they asked? If so, what, if anything, did you charge them?
Answer in the comments.
Read the answers to last week’s question: How Do You Physically Prepare for ‘Game Days’ in Your Legal Practice?
Featured answer:
Posted by JM-K: “On the morning of a courtroom appearance, particularly a trial, I make sure to have a conversation with a complete stranger on the train. Talking with a stranger helps get my words flowing, passes the time, and reduces my nervousness. I also usually learn something interesting about someone very different from me, and it often seems to brighten their day.”
Do you have an idea for a future question of the week? If so, contact us.
