These attorneys make house calls
by Jane Pribek Special to Minnesota Lawyer
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Pluto, an estate planning and elder law attorney, travels to her clients, holding her meetings with them in their homes and neighborhoods. That makes her a 100-percent house-call attorney.
“[I] meet with clients all over the state of Minnesota. We have clients from Luverne to Ely and everywhere in between,” she says. “We meet with them in the comfort of their own homes, at care facilities, at their advisor’s office or wherever they prefer.”
The pros
Pluto says there are many advantages to holding client meetings by house call. Near the top of her list is the fact that it’s been a huge success for her bottom line.
“It was the business model — sort of — of a previous firm I worked for. They had about five offices all over the state. We decided that cost was not worth it and it was easier to just make house calls,” she says.
Pluto had concerns that clients wouldn’t be comfortable with the fact that her only traditional “land office” is at least 200 miles away. But no one has had a problem with it. Making herself accessible to them by giving her cell number has helped in that regard.
She says, “My clients appreciate me coming to them. Many would not get the opportunity to do the planning if we didn’t make house calls.”
Steven B. Goff is a plaintiff’s personal injury lawyer who’s been making house calls for 30 years — although some clients want to come to his office and he’s fine with that too.
Goff, of Bye, Goff & Rohde Ltd. in River Falls, Wis., says early on in his practice, a mentor told him, “If you’re not good enough to meet with a client on their turf, you’re not good enough to take their case.”
Sometimes the practicalities dictate a house call, such as when the client’s car has been totaled, Goff adds.
But also, he says, “It shows the client that they have a lawyer who cares enough to come to them. You get that back with the level of cooperation, for example when you need them to get you documents or respond to interrogatories. I’ve found that long term, it makes the relationship better.”
Paul J. Scoptur, of Aiken & Scoptur S.C., has 31 years’ experience as a house call attorney and practicing in plaintiffs’ personal injury law. House calls are nothing new but they’re making a comeback in popularity, he says.
Scoptur learned about their value as a new lawyer, when a prospective client in East Troy, Wis., told him he had an appointment with another lawyer on Monday, but if he could get to him sooner he’d consider going with someone else. He left his Milwaukee office immediately and signed the client.
It’s simple, from Scoptur’s perspective: “We’re in a service profession.”
JD Haas, a Bloomington, Minn.-based lawyer, says his clients are always “extremely appreciative” that he takes the time to meet with them at their homes. “They’re always much more comfortable meeting with me in their own environments,” he says.
“I have a regional law practice. I have a client in Omaha, for example, and I’m fairly certain if I’d said after our initial phone call, ‘Come see me in my office in the Twin Cities,’ I wouldn’t have a client in Omaha.”
Haas, who practices in personal injury and bankruptcy law, says his clients in the latter group are especially impressed that he’s willing to come to them.
House calls are not unusual for cases involving the catastrophically injured, he notes, because any number of plaintiffs’ lawyers is willing to do that for cases involving hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages.
But house calls are a rarity for clients seeking debt relief. He’s happy to help them avoid the additional financial hardship they might incur by traveling to his office. It gives him an idea of their actual day-to-day circumstances. But also, it shows them a level of respect and dignity they might not get elsewhere.
The cons
House calls might not work if you’re in a law firm that’s driven solely by the bottom line.
They’re expensive. None of these lawyers bills their clients for mileage, or directly charges them for the visit. Pluto’s car is a company car, and all costs associated with it are expensed to her firm.
Because Haas is the sole decision-maker when it comes to the business of his firm, he doesn’t have to meet any expectations of law partners. Part of that freedom is deciding how he’ll spend his time and if it means traveling to meet with a client in Iowa, so be it.
Sometimes the drive does not produce any revenue, says Pluto.
“But I always look at it as positive marketing. We never charge for the initial consultation. Sometimes I may drive 100 miles to tell someone they don’t need to hire us. But again, if they had a good experience, they may tell two friends, who tell two friends — it’s like the Breck commercial from the 1980s. Since we don’t advertise and aren’t even listed in the Yellow Pages, our business is largely word-of-mouth.”
Pluto also says that house-call attorneys spend a lot of time in their cars.
While she enjoys the variety of destinations, and puts time behind the wheel to productive use, returning calls, some people definitely wouldn’t like all that driving.
And, it is the upper Midwest — we don’t need to remind you about the unpredictable driving conditions, November through April — although Pluto says she’s rarely had to cancel a meeting due to inclement conditions, about five times.
Another aspect that, sadly, needs to be on the house-call attorney’s radar screen is safety. Goff says they typically visit in pairs if it’s a first-time visit, while Scoptur reminds there are neighborhoods in Milwaukee that should probably be avoided after dark.
Jane Pribek is an editor-at-large for Dolan Media, Minnesota Lawyer’s parent company.
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