There’s nothing more important than respecting your clients, Bryn Sarvis believes. As a lawyer in a solo practice, she’s very aware that her clients are giving her an opportunity to do business with them.
“They’re coming to me because they’ve got a problem they can’t fix on their own,” she says. Even though all professionals should remember why their services are sought, it’s especially important for lawyers. “With rare exception, nobody’s coming to me for pleasant things. People come to me when they’re getting divorced or they’ve been injured, or something’s happened that’s going to cost them a lot of money and has changed their lives. They’re in dire situations and the relationship [between the lawyer and the client] is better if we remember why they need us and we keep that in mind the whole time.”
Lawyers and their staff members can get frustrated when clients call multiple times, expecting updates on their cases faster than is reasonable. Likewise, those clients get frustrated when those calls aren’t returned. It’s imperative for lawyers and their staff members to communicate with the clients about what to expect during the process, keep them updated, and be patient.
“If a client is about to lose his house, his reaction and concerns are different because of the circumstances he’s been stuck in,” she reasons. “If you remember that the clients have often been done wrong at tremendous expense, you understand why it’s important to call back.”
A Swansea native, Bryn graduated from Clemson University and St. John’s Law School in Queens, New York – with honors from both institutions. Her father, James Sarvis, and sister, Holly Patterson, are lawyers too. When clients cry in her office, which happens “every single day, literally,” Bryn follows her father’s advice and remains calm.
“He explained it this way: ‘You wouldn’t want your surgeon to cry when you’re crying. You want the surgeon to be the rock and let you know he can help you.’ I don’t get wrapped up in the emotion so I can focus on finding solutions to the problems.”
