Annalise Fleming, General Counsel of the American Bar Association.

Sometimes you just present the legal problem without kind of remembering to sort of state the underlying goals or the underlying considerations.

And so I would advise outside counsel to just not shy away from asking those questions.

You know, just something as simple as, okay, I understand the legal problem and you've been sued on these claims, but what's your overall goal here? I mean, what is, you know, where would you like to get in a perfect world? just to really sort of understand what some of those underlying considerations might be.

I think listening is probably the most important skill that all lawyers have and should own.

But it's certainly true in that context as well.

You know, there are different kinds of listening, of course.