Lynn Ward is the head of the Refugee/Immigrant Outreach Team (RIOT) at Eastminster Presbyterian Church where she hosts “Ms. Lynn’s English Club”. Lynn meets regularly with young girls from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Lynn shares “real-life” experiences with the young ladies and the group works on their English skills while Lynn learns a bit of French and Swahili! The girls are all members of a Church made up of Swahili-speaking refugees in Wichita.
A Passion for Community Service
The family law attorneys at Ward Potter LLC, share a passion for community service. Each attorney spends time outside of the office serving individuals and organizations in and around the Wichita community. Previous community service projects include leading a mentorship project with Hamilton Middle School. In 2012, Ward Potter (previously Ward Law Offices, LLC), was honored with the Wichita Public Schools Board of Education Good Apple Award for excellence in service to students. In addition to their collective community service work, each attorney at Ward Potter serves in various ways individually in Wichita and across Kansas.Below is a sampling of some of the organizations our attorneys and staff work with to improve our community and help the people in our community in need of not only legal services but help in other areas of life.
Junior League of Wichita
Lynn Ward is not only the Managing Partner of Ward Potter LLC. She is a Past President of the Junior League of Wichita. Lynn and the staff of Ward Potter were pleased to support the Junior League of Wichita in their fight against child abuse by supporting the Junior League of Wichita’s 16th Annual Holiday Galleria, a shopping experience for the whole family October 3-6, 2019 at Century II in downtown Wichita.
The 3rd Annual Show Pride in Your Ride Car Show was an unforgettable evening! With the support of our guests and donors we raised over $2400 for OK Elementary School and Black Traditional Elementary! Special thanks to the following businesses who donated wonderful items for the raffle or provided support of our event: Hereford House, Plastic Surgery Center, Hall’s Culligan, South Central Kansas Mustang Club, Joe’s Car Wash, USD 259, Big Tool Store, and Janet Evans.
On Friday, March 29th Ward Potter LLC and the Wichita Thunder joined forces to support the Guadalupe Clinic at Intrust Bank Arena.
The 2018 Show Pride in Your Ride event was held on Friday, September 7. All proceeds from the 2018 event benefited Pando. The Pando Initiative has been successfully connecting with more than 200,000 students in area schools since 1990. Their core model focuses on individual students who are struggling with school and life. They position a dedicated staff member inside partner schools in Wichita, Derby and Haysville public schools.
On September 15, 2017 Ward Law Offices hosted the first annual Show Pride In Your Ride car show. Show Pride In Your Ride was an informal, non-judged car show for friends, neighbors and colleagues of Ward Law Offices, LLC. During the event, Ward Law partnered with officials from United Methodist Open Door who held a raffle. Car Show attendees were able to purchase tickets for a chance to win a Richard Petty Driving Experience at Kansas Speedway. All proceeds from the evening’s raffle benefited Open Door. The focus of Open Door is to meet the basic needs of people in poverty. Their Homeless Resource Center, at 402 E. 2nd Street, is a daytime assistance center for the homeless, where individuals receive case management, a daily meal, access to showers, laundry and storage facilities, and mail service.
Passion Projects – Two Lives at a Time & The Refugee/Immigrant Outreach Team
Lynn Ward, Board of Directors of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and Stephen Blaylock, fellow of the Kansas Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers present a check to Laura Roddy, President of Junior League of Wichita; and Jessica Williams, Junior League of Wichita grant writing chair. Ward was presenting to Roddy a check for $5000 from the AAML Foundation for the JLW Two Lives at a Time project. The Junior League of Wichita and the Wichita Children’s Home will help teen moms develop crucial life skills, including how to build healthy relationships and effective parenting practices.
The Family Law Blog Series Part 3: Picking a Client
I thought it might be helpful to know how lawyers go about picking clients. Or, at least how we go about it. Understanding the beginning of the process might help prepare you for when you must make a personal, and potentially expensive, decision while under considerable stress.
There is no one way to select clients. For our office, the process has three steps:
- The initial contact from the potential client and information gathering to determine if our practice is in the same area of the law as the potential client’s case;
- The lawyer’s review of the information to see if the case is a good match with our firm; and
- The initial interview.
It is not a screening process – it is a time-saving process. We do not want to waste people’s time, and if we find that we are not a good fit, we try to refer them to another lawyer.
Once past the first two steps, we move to the initial interview. An initial interview with a client is like a job interview. It is important to make sure the client knows my background, skills, and approach to their case. It is equally important for me to know those same things from the client. Every client is different, and every case is unique. But, just like picking a lawyer, there are five things attoneys consider when picking a client. They are:
- The Parties: Conflict of interest is an overused phrase. Conflict of interest does not mean the lawyer is out. Many times, that is the result, but it is not automatic. For our office, the first information we ask is not only the caller’s information but the opposing parties’ information as well. If we had previous contact with the opposing party, we politely tell the caller we are unable to help. We do not state a reason why, which can be frustrating we know, but only that we are not able to help.
- Facts of the Case: No one “wins” a family law case. A client may prevail at trial, but getting to that point requires time, considerable expense, and the stress of not knowing what a judge will ultimately rule. While some facts are stronger than others, and it may seem inconceivable a judge would rule against those facts, oftentimes the perception a client has is not mirrored by the judge. When that happens, the “sure thing” case turns into a disappointing result. All of that is even more true in the area of family law, and when children are involved it can mean more animosity in dealing with the other parent in the future. Therefore it is absolutely critical for the lawyer to review the facts provided by a new client with some scrutiny and detachment. Sometimes clients struggle with this idea, and do not understand why the lawyer is not upset by the information they are providing. However, that detachment is ultimately to your benefit. It is better to spot the weak aspects of a case at the initial interview than learn them along the way, or (gulp) realizing them for the first time in court. To that end, help your lawyer, and yourself, by being brutally honest with all the facts. My grandma would say “warts and all”. It may be embarrassing, it may be difficult to talk about, but ultimately you will be much better off in the end.
- Timeline: News flash – lawyers can be busy! In our office we have a method established so we do not have too many cases at any one time, so we can give each client the attention they deserve. We know our client’s names, their children’s names, and the facts of their case. To keep that method in place, we tend not to take cases that have immediate hearings set. Granted, that does not apply to newly filed cases, but for the caller on Friday at 4:55 p.m. asking if we can appear on Monday at 9:00 a.m. for a hearing, we generally refer them to other lawyers. The best way to proceed is to be proactive. I know the case may not be something you want to deal with, but the longer you wait to talk to a lawyer the more likely it will be you are not able to retain the lawyer you want.
- Fees: Lawyers and trials cost money, and what a lawyer charges for their fees can be a major factor in deciding to retain them. Determining if the client can pay those fees, not just to retain but to finish the case, is a consideration. It is possible a judge may order the other side to pay attorney’s fees, and yes, we have had that happen on occasion. Usually, judges deny requests more than they grant them, and counting on an award of attorney’s fees is a mistake. Both client and lawyer need to be realistic, and we do so as politely as possible to make sure the client can afford what it is they want.
- Personality: Again, I saved personality for last because it is the most important. The lawyer needs to keep some distance from the client to remain objective. That said, working with someone who is difficult, is So, try to be civil, reasonable, and nice. It might be difficult and being under stress sometimes makes us speak/type before thinking. But making the effort will go a long way towards making the experience more manageable. At the very least, be nice to the lawyer’s staff. I understand that I sometimes need to be the listener when a client needs to rant, and in many cases, it is a good thing to get it out. But do not do it to the receptionist or paralegal. It is not their fault and barking at staff because you are angry about something the other party did is a good way for us to part ways.
There you have it, all the secrets we use in selecting clients. Hopefully, you can use them to your advantage to help a lawyer understand why she/he would be a fool not to take your case!
Tony A. Potter is a Member of Ward Potter LLC, where he uses his experiences in general civil, trial, and appellate practice to represent clients. Tony received his Juris Doctorate from Washburn School of Law in 1994 and has been continually licensed to practice law in Kansas since 1995. Tony is a member of the Kansas Bar Association, the Wichita Bar Association, the Northwest Kansas Bar Association, and Chair of the Wichita Bar Association Family Law Committee. His commitment to his clients was also recognized in 2018 when he was acknowledged as a “AV” attorney, peer rated for high professional achievement by Martindale-Hubbell, and he enjoys a 10.0 rating from the Avvo attorney website. Contact Tony
Ward Potter LLC is a family law firm located in Wichita, Kansas. Ward Potter handles divorce, child custody, parenting time, prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, visitation by grandparents, and paternity cases. The firm also provides litigation alternatives such as collaborative family law, mediation and arbitration. The mission of Ward Potter LLC is to guide clients through changes in their families with empathy, excellence and expertise. We strive to calm chaos and focus on the resolution, not the battle.
Meet the Attorneys
345 N. Riverview Ste 120 | Wichita, KS 67203
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A Passion for Community Service
The family law attorneys at Ward Potter LLC, share a passion for community service. Each attorney spends time outside of the office serving individuals and organizations in and around the Wichita community. Previous community service projects include leading a mentorship project with Hamilton Middle School. In 2012, Ward Potter (previously Ward Law Offices, LLC), was honored with the Wichita Public Schools Board of Education Good Apple Award for excellence in service to students. In addition to their collective community service work, each attorney at Ward Potter serves in various ways individually in Wichita and across Kansas.Below is a sampling of some of the organizations our attorneys and staff work with to improve our community and help the people in our community in need of not only legal services but help in other areas of life.
Junior League of Wichita
Lynn Ward is not only the Managing Partner of Ward Potter LLC. She is a Past President of the Junior League of Wichita. Lynn and the staff of Ward Potter were pleased to support the Junior League of Wichita in their fight against child abuse by supporting the Junior League of Wichita’s 16th Annual Holiday Galleria, a shopping experience for the whole family October 3-6, 2019 at Century II in downtown Wichita.
The 3rd Annual Show Pride in Your Ride Car Show was an unforgettable evening! With the support of our guests and donors we raised over $2400 for OK Elementary School and Black Traditional Elementary! Special thanks to the following businesses who donated wonderful items for the raffle or provided support of our event: Hereford House, Plastic Surgery Center, Hall’s Culligan, South Central Kansas Mustang Club, Joe’s Car Wash, USD 259, Big Tool Store, and Janet Evans.
On Friday, March 29th Ward Potter LLC and the Wichita Thunder joined forces to support the Guadalupe Clinic at Intrust Bank Arena.
The 2018 Show Pride in Your Ride event was held on Friday, September 7. All proceeds from the 2018 event benefited Pando. The Pando Initiative has been successfully connecting with more than 200,000 students in area schools since 1990. Their core model focuses on individual students who are struggling with school and life. They position a dedicated staff member inside partner schools in Wichita, Derby and Haysville public schools.
On September 15, 2017 Ward Law Offices hosted the first annual Show Pride In Your Ride car show. Show Pride In Your Ride was an informal, non-judged car show for friends, neighbors and colleagues of Ward Law Offices, LLC. During the event, Ward Law partnered with officials from United Methodist Open Door who held a raffle. Car Show attendees were able to purchase tickets for a chance to win a Richard Petty Driving Experience at Kansas Speedway. All proceeds from the evening’s raffle benefited Open Door. The focus of Open Door is to meet the basic needs of people in poverty. Their Homeless Resource Center, at 402 E. 2nd Street, is a daytime assistance center for the homeless, where individuals receive case management, a daily meal, access to showers, laundry and storage facilities, and mail service.
Passion Projects – Two Lives at a Time & The Refugee/Immigrant Outreach Team
Lynn Ward, Board of Directors of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and Stephen Blaylock, fellow of the Kansas Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers present a check to Laura Roddy, President of Junior League of Wichita; and Jessica Williams, Junior League of Wichita grant writing chair. Ward was presenting to Roddy a check for $5000 from the AAML Foundation for the JLW Two Lives at a Time project. The Junior League of Wichita and the Wichita Children’s Home will help teen moms develop crucial life skills, including how to build healthy relationships and effective parenting practices.