I’m proud to introduce the newest feature of our website: The William P. Harrington, Jr., Esq. Blog! (I’m open to more creative names for this, to be honest.) Here I’ll be posting any insights into law-related topics, sharing my real-life experiences as a practicing attorney (the good, the bad, the funny), and anything else that I feel might either entertain or inform you, dear reader.
I want to start with this: The core philosophy of The Law Offices of William P. Harrington, Jr., Esq. If I had to distill the essence of my practice and my approach to the law, it’s this:
It can be easy to see a client’s file as just a collection of papers and deadlines in the busy and often stressful world of practicing law, particularly as a sole practitioner. That has never been the way I see things. When a client comes to me with a credit card lawsuit filed against them, my foremost concern is the financial burden this person has carried on their shoulders for some time. Now they are terrified they are going to lose their home. I’ve even had clients express the fear that they’ll wind up in jail! (They won’t.)
The same holds true for every aspect of my practice. A client who needs help probating an estate is likely a close family member of the person who passed away, and they are probably still reeling from that loss. A client seeking to be appointed a Guardian over someone who has fallen into an incapacity is, very often, a close friend or family member of the incapacitated person. This family or friend has had to watch someone they care about slowly deteriorate.
No matter the legal issue, a good attorney must always see the human being behind the case file. There will be plenty of time, and opportunity, to dig through the cold, hard legal issues, the case law, the statutes, and so forth. But, whenever we lose sight of the client’s humanity, we do a disservice to them and the practice of law.