Closing statements: What is an underrated skill in the legal profession, and why?

“Empathy is a vital yet underrated skill for lawyers. We must acknowledge out loud the emotional and financial strains of our clients. No client ever retains counsel because everything is going well. Attorneys create a trusted relationship when we exhibit understanding. Finally, the lawyer achieves greater job satisfaction when partnering with the client to find the best solution.”
-Kevin Checkett, attorney at law in Carthage

“Be humble. Projecting superiority in education, knowledge, and legal skills, (even when true) damages you in the eyes of clients, judges, opposing parties, and opposing attorneys.”
-Johnnie Burgess, attorney at law in Charleston, South Carolina

“Empathy and compassion. Also, selflessness. Lawyers … sometimes believe the cases revolve around them and not the client.”
-Lynne Jaben Bratcher, owner of Lynne Bratcher Law, LLC in Kansas City

“Communication. This is a skill which I have come to appreciate over time as one of the most important ones in life, especially as an attorney. Skillful lawyers know how to ‘say what they mean’ and ‘mean what they say.’ My work as an attorney continually improved as I learned how to articulate what I really meant/needed to communicate to the recipient of my message ... I have learned to keep the emotions out the communication. Keep the superlatives minimal and keep my words designed to be something the recipient understands and will be willing to read without perceiving antagonism or puffery … Before sending any message, especially an important one, I should read it over several times and examine it from differing viewpoints.”
-Roger Baron, Former city prosecutor of Osage Beach; professor emeritus, University of South Dakota School of Law in Vermillion, South Dakota

Answers have been edited for length, clarity, and style.

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