Some people think that being represented by an aggressive lawyer will help them get a better outcome in their divorce case. There are some situations that call for aggressive client advocacy, but persistent aggressive behavior by an attorney can lead to a prolonged legal battle with skyrocketing expenses.
An aggressive stance can be taken:
- When the legal code clearly supports your arguments, and the other side is not aware of it.
- If a client is willing to spend money defending a position because it is important to his principles, even after being informed of the probability of losing.
- If opposing party attempts to intimidate you or your attorney, taking an assertive stance communicates that you will not be a pushover and sets the stage for negotiations rather than bullying.
When the parties are negotiating settlement, excessive aggression can be harmful if the attorney constantly approaches the negotiations with an attitude of perpetuating conflict rather than problem solving.
An illustration of this type of aggressive behavior would be during mediation when a lawyer rejects an offer and exclaims, “What a stupid offer, stop wasting everybody’s time and bring something better to the table”, instead of countering with another offer and allowing the negotiation process to move forward and increasing the likeliness of reaching a settlement.
The aggressive attitude in the first example detracts from negotiations and moves the parties further away from settling. This kind of behavior usually increases emotions and moves everyone into a less productive state. Aggressive actions like this can ruin an otherwise easily settled case, and drag it on into an expensive and time-consuming trial that might result in a worse outcome than what was previously offered during mediation.
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