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The Art Of Management For A Young Lawyer: Developing Your Management Style

Each person's style will be different, but some core principles are universal.

By Peter S. Garnett  
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I recently reflected that I have been practicing law in one capacity or another for about 10 years now. In each position I have held, I have been given more responsibility to manage the work of my colleagues. At my current firm, I am lucky enough to now manage the work of some junior lawyers and paralegals. That made me think — do I have a management style? And what is it that works best?

I believe that each person needs to develop their own style of management and find out what work best for them. But I also think that there are some core principles that will assist most lawyers in becoming better managers of their colleagues.

First, I think to be an effective manager, you need to be a good leader. The best way to establish yourself as a leader in your firm is to lead by example. If you expect your colleagues to work late at night, you should be prepared to do so as well. I know that seniority has it benefits, but if you show your more junior colleagues that you are willing and able to work late, then they will respect you more as a leader. This will also help you earn your colleagues’ respect and show them why you are in a management position.

Second, I believe that having a good demeanor is key to being an effective manager in the legal field. You should aim to be kind and understanding but at the same time, don’t allow your colleagues to take advantage of you. That is why I think it’s important to strike a balance between being a good colleague and a good boss. You still need to be stern and sometimes you may need to set aside your friendly demeanor so that things get done when necessary.

Third, to be an effective manager, you should always reward your junior colleagues’ good work. I think that having workplace events from time to time leads to more productive lawyers. Whether it be a firm event in the office, or taking your colleagues out for a celebratory meal, rewarding your colleagues for a job well done will encourage them to work even harder on the next assignment, and it will make for much better morale in the work setting.

There are also other ways to reward the lawyers and staff that you manage. I believe that most junior lawyers and staff really value experiencing the events in a case that they often can attend. If possible and cost efficient, make sure to bring your staff to client meetings, depositions, and court appearances. Speaking from the position of a former paralegal and junior lawyer, being brought to these types of meetings and appearances really meant a good deal to me. Being able to see what goes on after a document review or research memo is completed, works wonders to help your junior staff’s confidence and desire to work harder.

Overall, I think that you should manage your colleagues in a way that you would like to be managed by your bosses. If you were not treated well and not brought to client events as a junior lawyer or paralegal, you should not continue that trend. If you were to treat your colleagues in the negative way that you may have been treated, it will only create a bad work environment. Thus, if that is the case, then try to change things and be a good, effective leader who is respected by his or her colleagues and gets things done.

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Managing people will always be a challenge, but if you find what works for you, then your practice will benefit as your more junior colleagues can complete certain tasks and allow you to progress as a more senior lawyer.

Peter S. Garnett is an attorney at Balestriere Fariello who represents clients in trials, arbitrations, and appeals. He focuses his practice on complex commercial litigation and contract disputes from pre-filing investigations to trial and appeals. You can reach Peter at peter.s.garnett@balestrierefariello.com.

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