Client Interview and Advising

Prepared by

Nilima Singh
Roll 14 Sec B
BA. LLB 5th year
 General Introduction
• Client is a person who seeks the advice of a lawyer
• Interview means two way communication between client and
the lawyer
• The commencement of any case begins with the interview,
communication and discussion with the client.
• The basic knowledge of interviewing with the client and
communication skills has to be given before the lawyer enter
into his profession.
• Such kind of practical knowledge and training to law students
are lacked in Nepal
• Due to this law profession seems to be very weak in the context
of Nepal
• In order to make the effective communication
between lawyer and client following
communication skills are necessary:
 Oral Communication skills
• Oral Communication skills means a skill to keep
one’s view in a interesting and understandable
way in front of others and even to understand
the sense and meaning of others saying.
• It is necessary in the law profession.
• This skill can be enhance by gathering the
knowledge and even by practicing
Objectives of Oral Communication skills
• To make effective communication between the
lawyer and the client
• To obtain the necessary information from the
client easily
• To maintain understandable relation between
client and lawyer
• To guide and provide effective solution to client
and to fixed the further proceeding in the case.
 Reason of bad communication
From lawyer
• Not listening to the client properly
• By talking with the client more than necessary
• By reaching into the conclusion of the case without listening the
full story of the client.
• By disturbing client to talk or not allowing him/her to disclose
about the matter which he/she want to disclose.
From client
• In the fear of any kind of damage to their business, status,
reputation, some client hesitate to talk all the issues related to
case to the lawyer.
• Some client due to hesitation and shyness of being opposite sex
orNever
lower class
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to your feels
Doctor and uneasiness to talktowith
Never Lie your problems the
your lawyer
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 Listening
• Effective listening is very important in the interview.
• It gives motivation for the client to keep their facts and view.
• Interruption must not be done when they are speaking but if the client
is talking the things more than necessary at that time some
interruption can be done to bring them back on the issue.
• Such interruption should be done only in necessary otherwise it can
stop the client to keep their facts openly.
• Additional question can be asked to the client on the basis of what he
listened.

Listening is divided into two types

• Passive Listening
• Active Listening
 Passive Listening
• To carefully listen a client without keeping own’s view
Following elements are necessary in Passive Listening
Eye Contact: eye-eye contact with the client
Posture: sit in the position to make him feel that you are listening him
Nodding :Time to time nod your head up or down to make him/her feel
you are understanding what he/she saying
Acknowledgement: Using the word like- ‘ Oh yes’, ‘Ah’, ‘ho’ “Eh ho”,
“Kathmandu Mai”, time to time to admit the client’s saying
Express invitation:It is invitation to client to continue by motivating the
client to talk further when he/she stop by using word Then, ‘Ani’, ‘Tes
pachi k bhayo’ ‘ Bhanus na’ etc
Reflecting Feelings: You must make client feel that you are understanding
the sorrow and injustice happened to him/her by saying the word like
“I am sorry”, “This is not right”, “Kasto Anyaye ho yo ta”
 Active Listening
• To listen carefully and actively by interrupting
the client and repeating what he/she is saying
what you heard and understood.
It will be more effective if the lawyer tells the
summary at last after the client has nothing
left to say.
Mixture of both active and passive or anyone of
them has to be chosen depending on the
nature and condition of client.
Silence
Silence is one of the important element of effective
communication to motivate client to talk but sometimes
client remains silence to remember the facts, to know the
reaction of lawyer, at that time the lawyer himself has to
do effort to break that silence.
Body Language
Body language plays vital role to interrupt as well as
to motivate the client to talk. So good body language has
to be adopted for the effective communication. For
example Eye contact, body posture towards the client,
nodding of head has to be done whereas continuously
moving the pencil, cleaning the eye glasses, reading file or
book, murmuring songs when the client is talking should
not be done.
Questioning
It is one of the important skill to gain knowledge regarding the fac
of the case. Two types of Question can be asked. They are:
Open Question
Closed Question

Open Question
• Here choice is given to the client to speak on whatever issue
he/she likes. Here the word like ‘Tes pachi k Bhayo’, ‘Ani’ etc i
are asked where the client is free to speak on that what he/she
thinks important.
• The client is more actively participate in discussion
• But it can be lengthy and time consuming and not up to the fac
as necessary.
Closed Question
• Here only those facts related to case are obtained.
• Long Question are asked here Like When that deed
was made and whether that is registered or not?
• It is effective for those who feel shy to speak and help
to make the fact more clear to the lawyer
• But it creates obstacles to the client to keep their view
openly.
• Only those facts will be disclose which the lawyer want
to know other important facts will be missed
• Client will feel difficult to answer all the question of
the lawyer in the fear that he is answering right or
wrong
• Revised Question : If some of the answer is not
clear then question can be revised again.
• To ask question by playing role of the defendant:
Sometime the lawyer has to play the role of the
defendant by asking the possible the question to
the client that might be asked by the opponent
lawyer in the court. For eg: If you are not drunk and
If You are driving carefully with normal speed then
and how accident happened and why you ran away
after accident etc.
 Other skills are
• Note Taking: Note taking should not be done while the client is speaking. It
will interrupt the client to speak as well as to lawyer himself to listen. Some
times client will even hesitate to speak is the lawyer is writing what he/she
is saying. So, only after being clear about the fact at the end of the
discussion some notes or point has to be taken in writing with the name
and information of client related to the case.
• Revision: To revise all the things what client has spoke and to motivate the
client to remember what he/she has missed
• Summarizing : To repeat all the facts of the case in summary to the client to
let him/her know that whatever the lawyer heard and understood is correct.
• Analyzing: Whatever fact is heard must be analyzed by the lawyer with the
proper. It should not be done in the same day. Analysis should be done with
the proper research and study.
• Explaining: To explain the condition and position of the case and even the
solution of that case to the client after the making proper analysis in the
proper understandable language .
 Structure and Management
Favorable Environment and structure of the discussion
are very important for the effective communication.
Following points need to be consider for effective
communication
• To fix proper time and place for the interview.
• To manage proper distance between client and
lawyer so that they listen each other properly.
• To maintain cleanliness and silence in that place.
( mess of paper in the bench makes feel to the client
that the lawyer is careless and negligent one)
• Must respect the client and make use of proper
language
• Lawyer should be aware of the issue before the meeting with the
client and some study should be done regarding laws and
principles related to that issues
• Lawyer should be careful that no other person unrelated to case is
present over there and privacy should be strictly maintained
• Not to talk on the phone while client is speaking.
• Not to give advice on any issue in which you are not sure.
• Following structure has to be maintained
a) Welcoming
b) Collection of facts( Questioning)
c) Additional facts to be disclosed( revision)
d) Note taking
e) Analyzing
f) Explaining/Suggesting/advising
g) Ending by prescribing or fixing the next meeting
 Advising
• The process of seeking opinion, advice, suggestion or
solution of any issue by any person, institution or client
from the lawyer is known as Advising.
• Advice is given regarding legal and constitutional issue
• Some institution, company even hire lawyer as an
employee to seek the advice time to time.
• The profession of lawyer as an advisor is becoming popular
day by day.
In advising following points should be followed
a) To let the client to know about the condition of case
b) To advice on possible solution and alternative remedy
c) To advice client to choose the best remedy
d) To plan as per the consent and direction of the client
a) To let the client to know about the legal condition of case
The lawyer should tell the client the Legal condition of the case
in the understandable language whether the case is strong or
weak. If the meeting is for the first time then no advice should
be given without any study. Though the condition of case is very
weak wrong advice should not be given to client saying that he
can win the case.
b) To advice on possible solution and alternative remedy
Usually client are more interested to hear the solution of the
case rather than to hear long description of the law. Therefore
good solution has to be given to client with the explanation of
possible advantages and disadvantages of applying such
solution or alternative remedy. The client should be provided
with the knowledge of reasonable time and money going to
spent in the proceeding of case. Similarly, those solution which
is immoral and unreasonable should not given advice to the
c) To give advice client to choose the best remedy
There are two view regarding advising on best remedy
1. To put numerous solution and advising client to choose one by
disclosing the advantages and disadvantages of each and every
solution. But here the lawyer himself should not recommend
and compel to choose that solution which he/she prefer.
2. The lawyer himself choose the solution and make the client to
apply that.
For the effective communication mixture of both view should
be adopted
d) To plan as per the consent and direction of the client
After selection of the solution that solution has to be
implement with proper planning. And such planning has to be
done with the consent of the client. For example to fix the date
of filing the suit or replying on the suit, to fix date for the
mediation with the opponent etc.
Ending
• Proper ending of the interview is very necessary for the
lawyer to make sure that he has got all the necessary
information from the client
• At that time just saying the interview is over is not sufficient.
The lawyer should ask the client whether there is something
more that client want to discussed or not at the end.
Following points need to be considered while ending the
interview like to make clear what the lawyer and client need to
do next for proceedings, With whom the client need to meet
for proceedings, if some planning has been made during
discussion then what is time period to execute that plan, when
to meet for next interview and for this who will contact to
whom, what document should be bring in the next meeting and
amount of fees should be discussed with the client at the end.
 Departure
Departure of client should be done respectfully
by the lawyer. Usually departure should be
done by going with client up to the door.
THANK
YOU