In legal scenarios and trials, lawyers are frequently the greatest source of leaks and surprise releases of information. Every time you see, hear or view one of those in-depth analyses of a legal situation, it’s likely one of the participating attorneys is involved, because reporters sometimes are lacking in legal knowledge and they find lawyers are easy sources.
In turn, lawyers often call reporters to trigger stories about their cases—when they feel the coverage is hurting their case, the reporter is especially inept or the lawyers are made to look foolish or incompetent. Lawyers believe that when they explain things logically and carefully, reporters will understand and adjust their coverage. As important leaks go, lawyers are second only to the top bosses and board members who get to do this because it is their enterprise. Leaks of substance never come from the mail room.
The fact is, leaks of substance shouldn’t come from anyone without PR’s permission. So how do you control lawyer/media communications during a trial? First, it helps to understand the synergy between lawyer and reporter.
SOURCE VERSUS RELATIONSHIP
Reporters learn quickly that lawyers love to talk about the law. Lawyers will talk on the record, off the record, behind the record and, unless specifically instructed otherwise, will often do it without their client’s knowledge.
Like PR people who should inherently know better (because 70% of PR people are former reporters), lawyers delude themselves into believing that they can have “relationships” with reporters to exert some control over press coverage.
No reporter would ever admit to having any kind of compromising relationship with anyone. Those of you who are former reporters know this is the truth. Reporters have sources, not relationships.
Like reporters, lawyers also love contention and controversy; they enjoy the adversarial nature of the legal process. Yes, they feel it’s important for the public to understand what’s going on in the courtroom and most lawyers think they are great communicators, especially when it comes to upsetting or irritating opposing counsel. Rarely does the public care (unless client communication mistakes make them care).
BUTTON EXERCISE
The truth is, most comments by lawyers to the press are simply lawyers pushing other lawyers’ buttons. This is part of the adversarial attitude still being taught in law school. What law schools fail to teach (because it is beyond the lawyer’s responsibilities) is that button pushing rarely works in the courtroom and generally backfires on the client when done in public communication.
So how can a PR executive keep a talkative lawyer under wraps? Here’s five important instructions you can give lawyers before a case starts:
1. All contact with the press will be handled, approved or denied through a designated spokesperson or trial communication manager (TCM).
2. All phone calls, questions and messages from reporters should be instantly shifted to the spokesperson or trial communication manager. This means even the simplest questions, the most innocuous requests for information, hypotheticals and pleas for help in understanding.
3. In face-to-face meetings with reporters (such as those in and outside the courthouse), all requests and casual conversations shall be directed to the designated spokesperson or TCM for disposition.
4. If an attorney has a burning desire to phone or e-mail a reporter, such urges will first be shared with the designated spokesperson or trial communication manager, and their decision will be final.
It doesn’t matter that:
• Lawyers feel they have good relationships and communicate well with reporters.
• Reporters in your market may be used to talking to attorneys.
• Reporters have already contacted the lawyers, and the lawyer has promised a response.
• Your lawyers feel you are getting killed by the legal analysis (of others) in the press.
Bottom line: Rogue lawyer behavior is disruptive to good message strategy and delivery. This disciplined approach will help reduce distractions, shorten time-wasting meetings and prevent dozens of off-the-wall questions and collateral distractions. It will help keep everyone on message and focused on their real roles in the case. PRN
CONTACT:
Crisis manager James E. Lukaszewski heads the Lukaszewski Group. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at twitter.com/jimlukaszewski.