Employment Connection - Firm makes asking simple legal questions affordable

By Christine L. Mobley Legal News A new and innovative program to help employers weather the tough economic storm may just be the lifeboat many have been searching for. With recent and upcoming changes in employment law, employers - especially those having to do more with less - may require the advice of legal counsel but delay because of the cost associated with it. That's why Foley & Mansfield PLLP labor and employment attorneys C. John Holmquist Jr. and Gregory M. Meihn decided to build an ark aptly named the FM Employment Connection program. What the Employment Connection does is allow for employers to have unlimited access by phone or e-mail to an attorney to address their employment law concerns - all for the flat rate of $150 per quarter. "Once they're a part of the Employment Connection program they can contact us either by telephone or e-mail with any questions they have and we get right back to them and get them resolved," Holmquist said. According to Holmquist, "The day-to-day questions" are covered. "What (the program) doesn't include is if somebody came in and said 'We have a lawsuit' or 'We have a charge of discrimination' or 'We're planning on closing a plant,'" Holmquist explained. "But the day-to-day questions of interpretation of the law or how to handle certain Human Resource problems, how to deal with employees - that's all encompassed in it." "We thought that this program - by it's cost structure and by the expertise provided - would be a windfall for these companies," Meihn stated. "To say, 'You do not have to avoid talking with the very legal counsel that you need to talk to because of cost. You can come over and use the program and get immediate answers for your HR people instead of waiting.'" And sometimes by waiting, even bigger problems can develop. "The idea is to avoid the problems and hopefully you don't get the charges of discrimination or various lawsuits," Holmquist pointed out. "If Michigan companies are going to survive they're going to need good legal counsel to get them through all of (the changes in employment law) without thousands and thousands of lawsuits," Meihn added. Both attorneys feel that the Employment Connection gives employers another benefit in addition to quickly answered legal queries. "I think it's peace of mind," Meihn said of the program's biggest benefit. The ability to get on the spot solutions over the phone while in the midst of the problem is a nice advantage, he continued. Holmquist agrees that employers' ability to reach an attorney and to be provided with prompt answers to their legal questions puts many at ease. Meihn and Holmquist also agree that while the genesis of the program may have partially been out of economic necessity that it will be around for the long haul. "It's a good program regardless of the economy," Holmquist noted. The program, launched earlier this year, has been well-received by the business community, governmental entities, the court system...even other lawyers, Meihn said. It also received accolades taking the top honor at the Michigan Lawyers Weekly's 2009 21st Century Innovator event, which recognized 21 Michigan firms' creative and practical resourcefulness in the business of law. "We're seeing most employers are happy to get a lawyer on the phone and not have to pay $200 an hour for it," Meihn added. "We have to change the dynamic of how we relate with our clients. You will make money as a lawyer if you do good work. You don't need to become a millionaire off of a phone call." Published: Mon, Dec 21, 2009

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