{"id":903229,"date":"2024-08-29T14:53:35","date_gmt":"2024-08-29T20:53:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?p=903229"},"modified":"2024-08-29T14:53:38","modified_gmt":"2024-08-29T20:53:38","slug":"mistake-no-6-not-marketing-construction-lawyer-skills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/mistake-no-6-not-marketing-construction-lawyer-skills\/","title":{"rendered":"Mistake No. 6 of the Top 10 Horrible, No-Good Mistakes Construction Lawyers Make: Not Marketing Your Special Construction Lawyer Skills"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

David K. Taylor | BuildSmart<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have practiced law for 40 years with the vast majority as a \u201cconstruction\u201d lawyer. I have seen great\u2026 and bad\u2026 construction lawyering, both when representing a party and when serving over 300 times as a mediator or arbitrator in construction disputes. To be clear, I have made my share of mistakes. I learned from my mistakes and was lucky enough to have great construction lawyer mentors to lean on and learn from, so I try to be a good mentor to young construction lawyers. Becoming a\u00a0great and successful\u00a0<\/em> construction lawyer is challenging, but the rewards are many. The following is No. 6 of the top 10 mistakes I have seen construction lawyers make, and yes, I have been guilty of making this same mistake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No. 6: Not Marketing Your Skills: Internally and Externally <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

You are a proud\u00a0construction<\/em>\u00a0lawyer.\u00a0 Like Liam Nelson in many of his movies, you have a \u201cspecial skill\u201d set. You are both a transactional lawyer when negotiating construction contracts and a \u201cdispute resolution\u201d specialist when called upon. Unlike most \u201clitigators,\u201d who normally get involved after a dispute occurs, you are brought into a matter by a client early on in a project to provide legal and practical advice so that a full-blown dispute never happens \u2013 or if it does, the client will be in a better position to achieve a good result. You are an aggressive\u00a0fact finder<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0and\u00a0zealous advocate<\/a>. You know more about the way a construction project is financed, negotiated, documented and built than some of your clients. You can provide a more accurate analysis of probable outcomes of disputes, especially in arbitrations.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then what\u2019s the MISTAKE<\/strong>? The assumption in this post is that you want to be a successful, well respected, and \u2013 yes \u2013 profitable construction lawyer. If the answer is no, you are not reading this post. The mistake I often see, especially with young construction lawyers, is that they do not properly market themselves with these \u201cspecial skill sets\u201d both internally within the law firm and externally to fellow lawyers and the construction industry. This includes failing to make cross marketing a priority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marketing Internally<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Of course, marketing yourself internally depends on your experience, the size of your law firm and your construction group. But you can\u2019t sit back in your office and expect work to come to you or be fed work by a partner. Referrals can come from within a firm, whether from transactional lawyers or litigators. Establish yourself as one of the \u201cgo to\u201d lawyers for reviewing and negotiating construction contracts, reviewing arbitration clauses in non-construction contracts, and for all things related to arbitration. Offer to put on seminars about your practice or attend monthly practice group meetings for other groups. Send relevant construction law updates to your partners who are assisting potential construction clients in other practice areas. Pay attention to trends in the industry and deals being worked on internally, especially with clients for whom you have done work. Make yourself available (and do great work) if asked to help a client by a non-construction attorney at your firm. Seek out and create relationships with the most successful lawyers in your firm or group and ask how they achieved their success. The benefits of a personal \u201cin person\u201d relationship, not just via zoom or email, are substantial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marketing Externally via the Bar <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Because of the very nature of construction, and the number of parties involved in a construction project (lender\/developer\/owner\/designer\/prime contractor\/subcontractor), referrals by other lawyers due to conflicts regularly happen. If the construction bar in your area doesn\u2019t know you, other lawyers will not refer work to you, and that has to change. Consider doing the following to help build you brand within the local\/state construction bar:<\/p>\n\n\n\n