Monday Mentors with Houston Litigator Cody Stafford

Cody Stafford, partner at Dobrowski Larkin & Stafford in Houston, joins us to talk about boutique litigation practice, the importance of writing, how to prepare for an interview, and how to ask your supervisor for feedback.

Some of the episode highlights are:

• They are a complex commercial litigation boutique firm that does pretty much anything that falls under that umbrella
• Houston is booming! Energy/Oil/Gas always play a role.
• How/why do boutiques succeed when competing against the mega-firms?
• E-Discovery is a huge issue right now.
• Advice
  • focus on learning to write;
    • most of the practice happens on paper;
    • also it is going to be your first impression with the partners;
    • Bryan Garner really helps!
    • Keep it simple, clear, and avoid legalese
  • Gain a perspective that everything takes longer than you think, and you have to double check everything
  • Persevere
  • Do a great job on your assignment, but also look for ways to contribute to the larger goal of success in the matter.
  • Put in the work before asking for feedback on an assignment, and have a specific/defined question
  • If asking for general performance feedback, don't pop in and ask...make an appointment (maybe over lunch or coffee) so both of you can set aside time.
    • Also a good idea to come with your own thoughts on specific areas you feel you can improve in.
  • Think of every project you do for a client as client development, so work on becoming a great lawyer first, while at the same time having the big picture in mind that every client interaction can impact your future business
  • And...every time you are out and around people, those are potential clients...so be prepared.
  • When interviewing,
    • engage with the interviewers
    • show that you prepared and researched
    • writing sample is important
    • on a resume, it's not so much the content as it is the format, presentation, errors, etc.
    • demonstrate that you are detail oriented
  • Litigation is war, and you won't win every battle within that war so don't expect to or let it negatively impact you when you lose a motion, objection, etc. Keep the big picture of the overall case in mind.
• Rapid fire questions
  • Most important trait: dedication
  • Habit: questioning everything
  • Tool: Federal Rules App for iPad
  • Legal movie: My Cousin Vinny or Liar Liar