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What do we think of this custom Seiko?
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Enthusiast
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Mentor
Coach
Dickinson Wright salary scale?
Mentor
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Mentor
I wouldn’t raise it directly in the evaluation. I would have a direct (and difficult) conversation with them. I would frame it as wanting to help them progress and focusing on how there have been various communication issues that it’s best to resolve early in someone’s career. In the evaluation, I would say something like while the individual’s work has been positive overall, there are areas for continued improvement with communication before deadlines.
Thanks, this is really helpful!
Lying to cover up mistakes is not a small problem. It’s a huge problem. Especially if it has happened repeatedly. You should engage a partner or someone assigned to associate development for this one, because it’s not something another associate should be dealing with tbh.
Your junior isn’t making mistakes, your junior is engaging in behavior that is actively harming client representation and making it as hard as possible to uncover it. Mistakes are normal, no one has a career with zero mistakes. It’s the cover-up that is the issue and it’s a big deal.
Enthusiast
I totally agree. This is not something minor like typos of missing parts of legal analysis. This requires a stern talking to and escalation if need be.
Based on the comments here I’m going to get some flak but I would fire this person, like today. I can deal with lack of experience but I can’t deal with dishonesty. I shouldn’t have to explain to someone that honesty and integrity are a big part of this job.
Mentor
I don’t care if people lie about scheduling things or minor doc/attachment mismanagement which happens to everyone. But if people are lying in the more serious ways you insinuate and are stupid enough to (1) to tell a falsifiable lie and (2) to keep lying when caught then that’s more of a black mark on their judgment than the initial dishonesty. If they do this repeatedly they are pathological and you should fire them before they net ur firm a malpractice claim or throw you under the bus on something
Don’t put it in their review. Talk to them about it in person (like a mentor).
Disagree - this is what a review can be for (to raise job performance concerns). But I’d also have a conversation about it with them about it so that’s it’s not a surprise when it shows up in the review. If they do end up working there longer, it’s good to have a record if there are lingering issues.
It sounds like insecurity manifesting to me. I agree with A1 that you should approach them about it. How I would handle it (as a senior also) would be to go in with these concrete examples, not framing it as “lying,” but framing it like, “hey, you’re a junior associate and it’s expected that you don’t know some things, (maybe the example of the work they did wrong here), but I want you to feel comfortable asking me for help. And I don’t want you to think that I’ll get mad when you make a mistake (maybe example of saying they did something they didn’t here). I’d rather you tell me outright and then we can work to fix it. Part of my job is to help you develop into a successful associate and I want you to know that I am invested in doing that because I know you’re smart and a hard worker.” I don’t know, something a little softer, then if it continues you can go in with the “look, I know you’re not telling me the truth on this” more stern talk.
Good luck!! These conversations are the worst
Coach
Have you tried wishing that he couldn’t lie? Pretty sure those royal blue pens will stay royal blue. It may need to be a birthday wish, however.
Enthusiast
Your Honor, I object!
And why is that?
It's devastating to my case!
It permeates everything. They miss a deadline but don’t tell me until after and there’s some convoluted reason for it. They didn’t send a DocuSign but keep swearing they have, until the client calls me in front of them and it becomes clear they hadn’t, then it turns out it’s a DocuSign error that was undiscoverable until that very moment. They already know how to do x, y, z, but upon reviewing their work it was wrong and they clearly didn’t (which would have been fine if they’d told me as I could have explained it and provided examples for the work to still be completed in good time). They’ve already checked the signature pages, but turns out 3 were missing so they clearly hadn’t (or are more stupid than I’d realised). They thought they’d put their holiday for tomorrow in my calendar although they clearly hadn’t and it’s the first they’d mentioned it. It’s endless, but from really important things right down to the most trivial (eg my favourite niche restaurant also happens to be theirs - it seems very unlikely). It really puts me off wanting to work with them but I would like to help them improve as they are actually reasonably competent behind this odd personality trait. This has also been noticed by the whole team and ultimately will put everyone off wanting to work with them.
I’ve never experienced this w/ a coworker but definitely with friends/acquaintances. It’s basically a self-conscious/social anxiety related thing I think. Not that that excuses it, but helpful to look at it from that POV rather than the idea that the junior is some sort of malevolent liar. Either way they need to cut that out.
Sounds like this person has gotten this far in life precisely because they haven't been called out. Huge red flag for an attorney and something that needs to be call out directly and in no uncertain terms.
Basically say, "We see you. Here are examples. This is professionally and personally unacceptable and won't be tolerant. Change immediately. One more strike and you're out."
A lot of the above advice about management is very thoughtful. But if this person is already scheduled to depart soon anyway, if I were you I would balance some of that advice against an assessment of how much time you should keep investing in someone so unreliable and untrustworthy. Use euphemisms in written evaluation ("should continue to work on transparency with work processes and effective communication to team about deadlines and challenges") and have a solid conversation about how much this is a collaborative work environment in which there's not only no time for but also ethical risks associated with obfuscation and misrepresentation. Definitely let the junior know that these things that may seem little on their own add up and can also haunt a person's reputation (an attorney's valuable asset). Junior needs to see that behavior is a big deal that can cause problems for firm, client, themselves, and junior should also be reminded that they're a grown up and you're not a parent (neither there to scold or clean up, or be lied to when junior sneaks in past curfew).
But beyond that conversation I wouldn't continue to assist/guide/mentor--you're still going to have to spend the same amount of time as before double checking the junior, even if they improve, and maybe cleaning up after this person's work, if they don't. And then junior will leave as scheduled, while you give a little prayer for future supervisor.
Subject Expert
OP, do the firm a favor and put it in the review. If the junior gets fired, he or she deserves it.
Subject Expert
Do you care or not? If you don’t and they’re on their way out the door, I wouldn’t stress. This type of behavior is not copasetic to a long fruitful career. But if they’re heavily connected (fail upwards type) than it can be worthwhile to discuss so as to foster the relationship and for future business.
Subject Expert
World needs more seniors like you.