The Two Types of Family Lawyers
The term family lawyer can mean one of two things. First, a family lawyer is an attorney who practices, unsurprisingly, family law.
What exactly is family law? It is an area of law which focuses on familial relationships and dynamics. Typically, a family lawyer will focus in on matters such as divorce, custody, support, domestic violence, adoption and DCPP matters.
The second way the term family lawyer is used is the subject of this article. It is not uncommon for an individual, even an entire family, to rely on the services of a trusted attorney. That attorney is the family’s lawyer. He or she is an advisor who may have helped with a real estate closing, the drafting of a will or perhaps another legal matter.
Related: Tips for a Successful Relationship with Your Family Law Attorney
A Lawyer Experienced in Family Law vs. A Family’s Long-Term Lawyer
In the past, when fewer options were available to clients, a good lawyer could expect that a good job done for a new client would likely ensure that client’s loyalty and future business. Today, in a world of social media marketing and direct mail advertising, such long-term relationships cannot be taken for granted.
To put this matter into perspective consider the analogy of a family doctor. If you find yourself or your child to be ill you could either go to your regular physician or perhaps could visit one of those store-front clinics.
In 2014, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a statement which warned that retail-based clinics are an: “inappropriate source of primary care for pediatric patients, as they fragment medical care and are detrimental to the medical home concept of longitudinal and coordinated care.”
Now, you may ask, what does this have to do with family law. The answer is that just like a long-term relationship with you or your child’s doctor is important for overall health, so too is a long-term relationship with your lawyer important for your legal needs.
Related: Client-Attorney Relationship Advice
Long-term relationships between patients and doctors and between clients and lawyers may, in the minds of some, be a thing of the past. In an article in McKinsey & Company’s Insights & Publications: “Our gambling culture,” the author wrote how we have “… created a gambling culture in which we tune out everything except the most immediate outcomes.” We sometimes can gamble our future at the expense of this live-for-the-moment mentality.
Don’t Change Family Lawyers – Find a Lawyer to Join Your Family
Here at Gruber, Colabella, Liuzza and Thompson we offer both types of family law. We are lawyers who help with legal matters related to familial relationships and dynamics and we are general practitioners who are interested in developing long-term relationships with clients to help them with all their legal needs. We work with this motto in mind: your satisfaction is our future. Don’t gamble your future. Call today for a free consultation.