Do you want an aggressive lawyer? A lot of potential clients have a pretty clear idea that they want either an aggressive lawyer or a lawyer who focuses on compromise and negotiation. Fortunately, most clients have at least some understanding that compromise and negotiation are at the heart of the vast majority of “winning” family law situations. Both parties are usually the losers in litigation.

Most aggressive tactics are usually less than ideal for most clients. It is easy for a lawyer to slip into the temptation of recommending aggressive courses of action, as almost all aggressive tactics are time-consuming. Aggressive tactics may be broken into the following themes:

• If we went to court you’d at least get “x”.
• We need to terminate his parental rights.
• Let’s run the other side out of money.
• Judge, he/she is a lying manipulative evil-doer.
• Selective memory and faking hearing impediments.

The problem with the first tactic is that it often ignores what you will spend on legal bills and the stress of collecting. Of course, everyone should get the assets to which he or she is entitled. Limiting the other parent’s child visitation is sure to lead to problems down the road and give the prevailing party a sense of power. Running the other side out of money is a risky strategy – you never know what the other lawyer’s credit policy is, and therefore may be surprised. Trying to paint the other side as evil usually backfires by making the other side look reasonable. Selective memory and accusations also frequently don’t work, and opposing counsel will most often just stay focused. “Aggressive” counsel often become convinced of some rather far-fetched positions of their clients.

There is also the tactic of trying long-shot motions. Again, each time a lawyer advances a motion and fails, credibility is diluted.

The best strategy is to pick your battles and win. The one time when aggressive tactics are clearly appropriate is in the removal of an abusive spouse from the home. That’s about it in the family law arena, especially in the conservative judicial climate of the Memphis area. Making sure your client’s conduct is clean and waiting for the other side to make an error is perhaps the best strategy for a reasonable lawyer.

Remember, if your lawyer is friendly and congenial, that’s a good sign. A lawyer’s job is to be an advocate and to convince people of his position. Being nasty and bulldoggish might have a slim chance of intimidating a new or underpaid attorney. Usually a lawyer who realizes that compromise and negotiation are the way to go will just sigh inwardly at these tactics, and get to work resolving the matter in court where the bulldog usually lacks real skills, having come to rely on bluff and bluster.

The most effective way of going to court is to try to see the truth and then argue the most favorable application of that truth to your client. It’s a puzzle, not a fight.