LEGAL COACHING – GENERAL DESCRIPTION

Legal coaching is a type of unbundled legal service where a lawyer-coach offers behind-the-scenes guidance in order to provide a client with the legal advice, information, strategies and tools that they need to allow them to independently manage their own legal matter as effectively as possible.

Legal coaches can help in a number of ways including:

  • Legal advice
  • Goal setting (both short- and long-term)
  • Strategic guidance
  • Expectation management
  • Editing of client-drafted material
  • Education on relevant legal concepts
  • Process navigation
  • Preparation for court and ADR appearances (including preparation of necessary documentation),
  • Assisting with negotiation and settlement

With legal coaching, the client maintains responsibility for all aspects of the dispute, but the coach is available in the background to provide advice and support as needed.

Think of it this way: In a traditional practice, the lawyer drives the “legal bus” while the client rides as a passenger. With legal coaching, the client drives the “legal bus” with the lawyer as the “GPS/navigation system”.

More content on legal coaching is currently under development. Stay tuned!

Legal Coaching a Win-Win for Clients and the Bar: Read this excellent article from the Canadian Lawyer Magazine dated May 29, 2017, written by Sandra Shutt, featuring Nikki Gershbain, former national director of Pro Bono Students Canada and former member of the Family Law Limited Scope Services Project Steering Committee.

Legal Coaching and Access to Justice: Another great article on the legal coaching model published by Precedent Magazine on December 5, 2017, written by Daniel Fish.

The What, Why and How of Legal Coaching: An article in Slaw online magazine written by Julie Macfarlanene on December 18, 2013.