New York Lawyer
February 24, 2005

Q:
I have been told to go out and get more business. Fine -- but it�s not so easy for a young female lawyer to take male clients out to dinner. What can I do?

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A:

This very issue came up last week at a seminar I participated in at the New York State Trial Lawyers Association. The topic was networking and contact building for women lawyers, and one of the questions involved the issues with trying to get business when awkward dynamics such as the one you�re talking about intervene.

Getting business is vital to being taken seriously within a law firm environment. So it�s important to figure out a way to finesse some of the problems that arise, especially for women in a male-dominated profession.

First, there are many ways to network aside from taking people out to dinner or lunch. So don�t feel too confined by what are considered the traditional wining and dining ways to court new prospects. Make a list of everyone you know; evaluate the likelihood that you might be able to get business with them; call them and simply schmooze on the phone, saving the lunch and dinner dates for truly likely prospects; try to get introductions to other people through the people that you already know; and read one of the many tomes out there on marketing and networking, to get even more ideas. And don�t overlook other avenues for marketing and business getting, such as joining bar associations and trade associations, writing articles in your practice area

As for your particular situation, involving the male-client-at-dinner scenario: many women report a discomfort in such a setting because it "feels like a date," especially when you throw in a glass of Chardonnay or two. The time-honored solution is to bring someone else along -- male or female. If there is more than one person present, it actually makes conversation and relationship-building easier all around. You can think of it as an opportunity to cross sell some other person in your firm, but also make it apparent that your intentions are strictly professional.

If you�re not sure how to broach this with people in your firm, simply express it as in keeping with the best interests of the firm. You can say, "I know that we all want to get more business, and I want to do that, too; however I�m concerned that some male potential clients might get the wrong idea if I call them up. If someone else comes along, it will be clear what the purpose of the meeting is, and we�ll have a chance for getting the business." In other words, make the focus that the firm might lose out on getting business, not that you are reticent about making client calls. You�re more likely to gain credibility using that approach and to get a positive response.

Sincerely,
Holly English