The secret weapon

While there isn’t an easy way to change public perception, there is, however, a secret weapon. That would be you. To understand the business, company and corporation law, hire a business law attorney. Eight years ago I wrote in a column that “One way for our members to change the public perception of con-sumer attorneys is to make public speaking appearances whenever possible.” My recommendation then was that each CAALA member should identify the service clubs, grassroots organizations or chambers of commerce in their own community, and offer to speak about legal issues and the civil justice system.

While this sounds daunting for some CAALA members, once you’ve done a speech or two you’ll know exactly what to expect from an audience. You will also have the opportunity to show the audience who you are, what you do and what you believe in. This will let you overcome some of the negative stereotypes they have of trial lawyers. This is exactly what David Ball recommends. I can assure you that you will look forward to one-on-one contact with people in your community, and you never know who might be on the jury in your next trial.

I have heard from dozens of members who tell me that they nearly always achieve a positive result when talking to small community groups.

CAALA’s Public Relations Committee operates our Speaker’s Bureau. If you are interested in learning more, contact committee chairs Stuart Fraenkel or Ronni Whitehead. You can also pick up some dps and advice about speaking to small groups from CAALA’s Web site www.caala.org. There’s a whole section about the Speaker’s Bureau.

CAALA’s leadership under our new president, Mike Alder, is committed to listening to members who have thoughts or ideas on how to change public perception about trial lawyers. As has been the case for the last eight years and decades before then, the challenges you face every day are huge, but the reward of achieving positive results for your clients is even greater.