Fellow international attorney Ed Lebow and I met last year at an international law conference. Ed has spent a lot of time both negotiating for Japanese clients and against Japanese counterparts. As a former Assistant General Counsel of the U.S. International Trade Commission, and now a member of Haynes & Boone’s International Trade and Customs Practice Group in Washington, D.C., Ed has had over 20 years’ experience in major Antidumping, Countervailing Duty and Section 337 cases.
Ed, a Japanese speaker and Japanophile, shares some tips with non-Japanese lawyers and businesspersons about how to negotiate with the Japanese. Click here to read his Cross-Cultural Reflections on Negotiating with Japanese Businessmen.pdf.
Thank you for sharing your insights, Ed!
Janet, I’ve enjoyed your blog. I’m residing in Argentina for the next few yearsand have an opportunity to study law here. When I return to the US, will I be able to sit for the bar, will there be opportunities for someone like me, willthose opportunities be significant, or will they in fact be limited by
virtue of where I got my education? Many thanks.
Tim
Dear Tim: I am glad that you have enjoyed reading my blog. In fact, by reading the posts in the “Ask Janet” category, you will see that I’ve addressed inquiries similar to yours.The January 22 post will give you the links to the states that admit foreign trained lawyers to practice in the US and the qualifications for doing so.It also gives the link to the rules on this issue from the NY Bar which, at the moment (and probably for the foreseeable future) will be the state that is most welcoming to foreign trained lawyers. Review the requirements carefully, not only now but also closer to the time that you would seek to become licensed to make sure that you have met the requirements.Your best potential employer would of course be one that would need your Argentine law expertise, like a company that does a lot of US-Argentine business, law firms that service such clients, or a governmental entity dealing on US-Argentine matters. It seems to me that getting some actual legal work experience while in Argentina would improve your resume–experience that you could even get while in school. A lawyer with practical work experience–not just the theoretical knowledge of foreign law–is much more marketable.
You asked whether your job opportunities in the US will be limited by virtue of where you got your education (Argentina rather that the US). Generally speaking, yes. A US trained lawyer with good grades from a good law school will have more job offers. However, if you can play to your strengths by emphasizing your niche (Argentine law knowledge), and find an employer who needs just that, there may be an ideal job for you.
Your ability to find a job in the US really depends on your ability to network effectively. Use your time in Argentina to make as many contacts as you can with Argentines doing business in the US. Even if they are not in a position to hire you, they can make valuable introductions to others in the US for you. Likewise, during trips to the US during the next few years, continue such networking on the US side. In fact, you might go ahead and get involved in the International Law Section of the ABA now and start building contacts. As a student, your membership rate will be lower.
By the way, I just wrote a chapter about moving up the international law career ladder for the upcoming third edition of the Careers in International Law book published by the ABA’s International Law Section. Keep your eyes peeled (or check my blog) down the road to see when the third edition is released. All of the chapters will have info. that may be useful.
All the best,
Janet
International business travel doesn’t have to be 100% business, as discussed by Owen Wild in a recent Inc.com post. Taking the time to see some sites (even if you have to tack on a day at the beginning or end) can make any business trip less burdensome. When I practiced law, I tried to arrive at my destination in advance of my meetings–unless I attended a closing, in which case I tacked on a day at the end of the trip.
If you are traveling with colleagues and/or clients, use the trip to build rapport. Owen Wild notes, ”working in a strange city can be a real team-building experience.” Realize that although you are probably very comfortable spending time in another culture, the same may not be true of your colleagues and clients. Use your international savvy to make their trip more comfortable, “translating” and managing cultural differences for them. For example, prepare them in advance for any cultural nuances in negotiation styles that may occur during upcoming meetings.
Be sure to ease your clients’ and colleagues’ concerns with some cultural hand holding. After a day’s meetings, discuss the cultural differences over dinner. This will increase their comfort level, build rapport and again highlight your value as a culturally savvy attorney.
International lawyers of various nationalities email me for rainmaking tips. Often they are working in countries other than their homelands, such as Indian attorneys practicing in the United States, German lawyers working in Argentina, or American attorneys practicing in Hong Kong.
Regardless of your national heritage, your background can be a real client development asset in that it gives you a unique perspective–and perhaps an advantage over–equally qualified attorneys with a different heritage. Your background must be a compliment to (but not subsitute for) stellar legal skills, and so showing a prospective client that you have the requisite legal acumen is key.
Last week Donald Prophete of Ogletree Deakins explored this topic with Michael Cummings through The Law Marketing Portal, As an African-American partner in his law firm, he routinely thinks about this topic. Prophete notes that after he establishes his value with a potential client, ”my heritage may be an asset because it can be an advantage for me over other attorneys they may be considering for the work. So, my diverse background complements the business value I provide.”
Similarly, international lawyers may find that they share the same national heritage as certain prospective clients, or that their heritage gives them particular insights into the project at hand–or even the clients on the other side.
Regardless, use your national heritage to your advantage. If you are located abroad, be sure and network with other nationals of your heritage who may become good referral sources. Expats often enjoy connecting with expats from the same country. And as Prophete suggests, look for other professionals of your heritage to mentor you as you grow your practice, even if they work in different fields. This holds true for lawyers both in and outside private practice.
There’s nothing worse than strained chit chat with a stone-faced potential client. So, what’s a good way to break the ice? Laughter.
Today’s New York Times sheds some light on this ill understood social phenomenon in What’s So Funny? Well, Maybe Nothing. As the article notes, laughter is “an instinctual survival tool for social animals, not an intellectual response to wit. It’s not about getting the joke. It’s about getting along.”
So, lawyers (especially the most serious ones) should certainly attempt to laugh (or at least smile) at their clients’ jokes–no matter how poor. Lawyers can also try to break tense client communication with some laughter because, as the article notes, “mainly it’s a subtle social lubricant.”
Lawyers working on cross-cultural matters should pay close attention to cultural differences in humor. What’s funny in one country doesn’t always translate abroad.
If you don’t know what constitutes humor in a particular foreign culture, try to gather some data in advance. Read books like those in the Culture Shock series or Roger Axtell’s Do’s and Taboos of Humor Around the World: Stories and Tips from Business and Life and Gestures. Speak to consular representatives from that country, or US State Department personnel assigned to the relevant country desk, and ask about culturally appropriate humor. Foreign language professors and businessmen with experience in the relevant country can also shed light on the topic.
If you find yourself in the middle of a client conversation without time for advance research, pay attention to any humor introduced by the client. Gauge what constitutes acceptable humor and, more important, what does not. And if you make a cultural gaffe as I did (see Oops–You Forgot to Say Buenos Dias), apologize, if necessary, make a self-depricating joke about your cultural slight, and above all, learn from your mistake.
For more on this topic, refer to my prior post Address Touchy Subjects with Humor–but Carefully.
