Filipinos are the Best Clients, Talaga!

By: Janice Dantes

 

As an attorney, I served many clients throughout my career. I did pro bono work for some of the neediest residents of Chicago and have also served very wealthy individuals living in the North Shore. While I may be biased because I am Filipino, Filipinos have been my favorite clients. I am not alone in this assessment as I have partnered with other firms who also welcome the opportunity to service our community. These are my top 5 reasons why Filipinos are the best clients:

5. Filipinos are Appreciative. In my career, the clients who have been most unappreciative of my services have all had positive outcomes.

One of my earliest client requested that I break her lease and have her moved out by mid-October. Without resorting to a lawsuit, I was able to break the lease and have her moved out by mid-October. She complained about how she had so little time to move and that she should be paid for the trouble of having to move out in such a short time. She then refused to pay the rest of my attorney’s fees which totaled just under $400. This person was not Filipino.

I have had many case for Filipino clients where I was only able to provide a slightly improved situation. Sometimes, the outcome was not good at all because the judge did not think there was a case. While I understand their disappointment, the Filipino clients I have served have always been appreciative of my willingness to fight for them and allow them to have a chance at success even when the outcome was not what they hoped for. They recognize that without the assistance of an attorney, they would not have had any chance at success.

Their appreciation of my help and my services have been a tremendous motivating factor for me to work hard on their cases.

4. Filipinos are Honest. Maybe it is because my Filipino clients can speak to me in Tagalog or it is just the nature of Filipinos, but my Filipino clients have been incredibly honest and candid with me about their situation. Sometimes they reveal too much information. However, it is much better that they reveal more information than necessary even if the information hurts their case. In the same way that Filipinos are honest with me, I can also be honest with them about what I believe their chances of a successful outcome are.

Many of my non-Filipino clients tend to omit facts that are detrimental to their case. I had one client tell me that she did not want her daughter going to Florida because she had never been there be- [Gmail]Tis the Time for Good Cheer by Maria Girlie Pascual (Continuation from Page 27) Hail to the Birthday Queen Neneth Miranda Alice Monk and Joe Mallari at Neneth’s Party More Princesses at Neneth’s: Lourdes Livas, Diane, Alice, Neriza and Edwin Pineda Lindy Tan, Elsa Castillo, Precy J and Susan Francisco join Neneth’s royal court Filipinos are the Best Clients, Talaga! fore. In court, I made this argument. Then the other party presented a notarized consent from my client for that same child allowing her to go to Florida two years earlier. Obviously, I lost.

3. Filipinos Respect and Trust Their Lawyers. I have had clients who did not trust me and questioned every email, every call, and would lay blame when the outcome was not what they wanted. When I start to be micromanaged, I will drop the case like a hot potato.

Filipinos trust my expertise and defer to my judgment when they hire me. This makes for a much easier working relationship and also allows me the flexibility to build rapport with opposing counsel without having to constantly report back to the client (e.g. some of my non-Filipino clients do not like it if I am nice to opposing counsel).

With this kind of trust, I am often able to reduce the cost to the client but relying on informal arrangements with opposing counsel to minimize costly litigation.

Also, communication with my client becomes much more streamlined because I can provide text updates or informal emails rather than writing a formal letter detailing every step I did and justifying why I made the decisions I made. No Filipino client has ever insisted that I talk to them after hours when I was with my children. No Filipino client demanded that I respond to them immediately.

No Filipino client has ever insulted me or blamed me for an adverse outcome. Most importantly, my Filipino clients recognize that I have a family and a life and respect my time with my children. Because of the respect they show me, I return the same level respect.

2. Filipinos Are Reasonable. My mother had in my house growing up this prayer, “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.”

I have had many clients who cannot accept the reality of their situation. Recently, I had a client who had child support reduced by almost half. While we were arguing for a larger reduction, he was unwilling to accept the amount and refused to enter settlement negotiations that would actually be beneficial to him and his children. Rather than settle the case, he would rather litigate and pay an attorney to explain to the judge why he should not pay for extracurricular activities (Let me let you in on a little secret: those lawyer fees would more than cover the costs of the extracurricular activities).

Filipinos are practical enough to put their families above principle and ego. When I tell them to settle knowing that I can make more money to fight in court, they listen and they are willing to let go and do what is best for their families. Filipinos have excellent perspective in life and would rather accept a less than ideal outcome to spare their families turmoil from continued litigation rather than prove that they are “right.”

1. Filipinos Pay. This is probably the most significant difference between my Filipino clients and my non-Filipino clients. Filipinos pay their lawyers. They understand that legal services are expensive with no guarantees of success. They also know inherently that they need a lawyer and are conscious that hiring a lawyer requires a financial commitment. This “utang na loob” is probably one of the most respectable traits of Filipinos and is also something I carry with me in my own life. I have never had to chase a Filipino for money nor have I had to convince a Filipino client of the value I provide. I have clients who can only pay $150/month on a case that cost several thousand dollars to complete. They diligently pay their monthly obligation and often send me nice notes with their payments that allows me to keep going when I have bad days.

As I write this article, I want to thank the Filipino community for your support. You are my favorite clients, and I look forward to serving your needs now and into the future. Please call (312) 546- 5077 for a free consultation.

Thank you for reading. Until we meet again, love one another.