It is important to remember that as attorneys, we wear many different hats. Sometimes we wear all the hats, stacked on top of each other, all at the same time. We need to remember all the hats we have and the roles we fill for our clients. First and foremost, we are advocates for the entire human standing before us requesting assistance. As much as attorneys try to compartmentalize their role as only to handle the “law stuff”, we represent humans who have complex needs. We see clients during some of the most challenging times of their lives, whether it is a divorce, an accident, unlawful discrimination, or some other serious dispute. It is unrealistic to think we are not serving as social worker, friend, and advocate as well as attorney.

This becomes even more important when working with individuals with disabilities. It can be easy to gloss over an individual’s unique needs in favor of resolving the matter quickly to get it off the case list to move on to the next 5 cases. Doing so risks alienating your client or depriving your client of meaningful participation in the process. We should be taking direction from our clients; if we do not ensure that our clients are meaningfully participating, we run the risk of making decisions for them. We need to break out of the mindset that we are only one thing performing only one function and expand our representation to the whole human.

In advocating for our clients, it is important to recognize that disabilities may manifest differently in different individuals and call for varied accommodations, even for the same disability. A disability may be open and obvious or something that you cannot see or identify as easily, such as a mental illness or a learning impairment. The accommodation that the individual may need should be conveyed by the individual, and it is important for the lawyer to listen to what the client may need.

For instance, a client with a visual disability may need paperwork provided in braille or read aloud. A client with a hearing disability may need an ASL interpreter. A client with both a visual and an auditory impairment who is unable to see the interpreter sign or hear spoken language may need a tactile interpreter who will sign with the client’s hands placed over those of the interpreter.

Serving a client with a physical disability may require you to ensure that there is an accessible entrance and other accommodations to the physical layout of a space or to request an alternative method of participation if those accommodations cannot be made. For example, a client who was unable to leave his bed has been permitted to attend a hearing via Zoom as an accommodation.

Regardless of your client’s ability to self-advocate, your client knows their limitations and is able to tell you what they may need help with.1  An important part of being able to provide accommodations in communications with clients is knowing where and how to provide those accommodations. It may take creative thinking on your part in some cases, but you should listen to what your client needs and then determine how you can remove the barrier.

Lawyers often are so accustomed to using legal terminology or phrasing things from a legal perspective that at times we forget that not everyone thinks or speaks like lawyers do. Of course, failing to remember that we may need to modify our communication when speaking to non-lawyers affects our relationships with all clients, not just those with disabilities. However, if the client has a disability, it can sometimes add another layer to those communication needs that an attorney must be mindful of. Some examples of what this could look like include using reading-level-appropriate language or language that is understandable for the individual; providing written communications in larger print for clients with visual impairments; providing written communications in an electronic format, such as an email, to allow for use of an electronic reader; and having written communications produced in braille.

Language interpreters may also be a vital resource for adequate communication, but it is important to note that a language interpreter is not a disability accommodation; it is a communication accommodation. For instance, the need for an English-Spanish interpreter is a communication accommodation, but an ASL interpreter is a disability accommodation. There are different considerations for language interpreters and for a disability accommodation interpreter.2

• 1In the case of a client or potential client whose disability raises questions of mental capacity (e.g., a severe intellectual disability), additional technical assistance may be available through Disability Rights Louisiana. See Disability Rts. La.
• 2For additional discussion of language access in the courts, see this manual’s chapter on Language Access.