COFFEE WITH ASHLEY ADRIAANS

“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.” — Steve Jobs – My favourite part of being a attorney is helping my clients figure out the big picture for their business, answer questions that have been worrying them and decide what requires immediate attention and what can wait. I particularly enjoy developing strategies that allow each of my clients to achieve the best possible case result.

Engineering the Adriaans Attorneys road map – Whilst establishing my own practice in 2010, I’ve developed an ever changing road map that can propel beyond today’s challenges and accelerate the firm toward the future. I believe in partnering with my clients and strive to build long standing relationships that are based on openness, honesty and integrity. In doing so, together we are able to develop mutually beneficial relationships with our clients where we understand their business needs and take active steps towards assisting our clients in achieving their business milestones.

As a litigator for 18 years, I’ve seen the adverse effect of the aggressive approach – I believe the true standard of an effective practice isn’t just dramatic victories at trial; its total commitment to finding the best most effective resolution to a client’s dispute. I understand that my clients need to have disputes resolved quickly, economically and successfully, and in certain instances to achieve this result, I encourage my clients to listen to the “other side” and negotiate in an effort to resolve matters outside of court, where possible.

Drafting in plain English – I believe in presenting advice so that in a single reading, my clients can read, understand and act upon it. The argument that clarity should be sacrificed for a document to be comprehensive does not stand up. I believe that drafting a document in plain English takes a lot of skill. Communicating points clearly so that my clients can accurately interpret the meaning is the most important task in writing. My job is to communicate precise ideas, not produce a work of literature.

The family man – My family is my richest blessing. I cherish the times we spend together and find it easy to switch between the roles of Dad and Attorney. As a litigator and managing director of a growing law firm, I’m faced with big corporate decisions, intricate cases and challenges of the South African economy on a daily basis, but switching to my role as loving father to my 1 year old daughter is surprisingly easy. I’m a firm believer in work – life balance and operate my business and attend to client needs in this manner.