We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sandra Tolliver a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Sandra, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

Law is a professional service business but lawyers can easily forget to focus on “SERVICE,” instead focus on the business of making money. I focus on the needs of my clients. As a litigator, my clients may need crisis management in addition to legal representation. I accept the responsibility to treat each client with respect, listen to their needs, and help them find outside resources. As a mediator, I have a different approach than a typical mediator who evaluates the legal case and encourages compromise. I believe that the participants in a mediation want their voices to be heard, not just their attorney’s voice. I gather information directly and confidentially from the participants on non-legal issues, in advance of the mediation session, to assess their emotional state and identify roadblocks to resolving the case. The process raises the participants’ self-awareness and provides a safe space in the mediation for self-expression. The participants feel empowered and confident in the resolution reached.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a Tulsa native. I chose to leave Oklahoma for further education. I majored in psychology with the original intent of obtaining a Ph.D. in clinical psychology. I then opted for law school and added a double major in economics to expand my knowledge base. I returned to Tulsa to practice law and have remained here since 1985. While I describe myself as a civil law and family law litigator, over 39 years, I have also had the opportunity to work on civil rights cases, criminal cases, real estate issues, juvenile issues and appeals. I have drafted contracts and negotiated business deals. I have represented individuals and small business owners of all races, genders and ethnicities. I value diversity. I am a trained mediator for civil case and family law cases. COVID prompted me to change my view of my industry and my own life. I purposefully chose to change how I practiced law. I did not rebuild my litigation team. I sold my office building and now work remotely and from a coworking space. I am very selective in the work I take on. I am still able to provide client-centric quality representation in civil and family law cases with the use of technology and remote workers.
I also purposefully chose to be active in the community. I joined the Tulsa entrepreneurial ecosystem. I joined non-profits helping women, non-profits promoting technology, and a non-profit supporting fathers. I love to connect people and organizations. My network is my network. I have joined many circIes and the circles have overlapped. I educate myself on the resources available to help my clients and the community. I enjoy speaking opportunities to share my knowledge and my own views.
I participated in an entrepreneurial accelerator to further develop my unique mediation model. I feel I am coming full circle back to my psychology roots to use my experience with clients in distress to improve the practice of law and a mediation model focused on the individuals. I call it “Human First, Law Second.”

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

Technology has been the key to communicating with clients. The legal industry, has resources readily available to stay updated on legal techology. I have served as the Chair of our Oklahoma Bar Association Law Office Management and Technology section and attended the annual American Bar Association Legal TECHSHOW in Chicago several times. I have attended the annual Oklahoma Solo Small Firm Conference for years. I use a practice management software to store digital client files. I use email extensively. Some clients want to text. I can now text from within my software and preserve that communication. Systems can be set up to prompt reminders to clients. I started in law when advertising was prohibited and your referrals came from word of mouth. Your reputation was built on providing a good service and client satisfaction. I still rely on those referrals. However, I think of brand loyalty now as stemming from digital marketing and social media. I resent social media when it is used to disparage an opposing party in a lawsuit. I have had to overcome that view when promoting my own business. I have a website, a Facebook business page and a LinkedIn business page. However, I need to write more content and schedule my posts which I have not made a priority. My new mediation model does need the benefit of brand loyalty. I need to focus new marketing on expanding my mediation practice.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I have a reputation for being a passionate advocate for my clients with opposing counsel and with the Court. I work with compassion and respect for my clients. I do not judge their circumstances or their choices. I suggest outside resources when needed. I enter a courtroom with knowledge and preparedness of the case. I educate my clients on the law and the procedures. I am direct and not afraid of making a unique legal argument. I am creative when building the evidence needed to support each case.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.tolliverlawoffice.com