Our values

Defending with VALOR

At Coontz Law, we have a set of five core values that are at the center of all our choices and actions. We live, act, and defend with VALOR: Veritas, Audacity, Liberty, Ownership, and Results.

Each of our values comes with four precepts that give us a little extra guidance when we’re not sure what it means to live up to our lofty ideals.

Instead of giving you a dressed up version of our values and precepts for the website, we’ll just tell you what Dustyn preaches to the Hive:

Veritas

Veritas is Latin for truth. We believe truth sets free, and we re in the business of setting folks free. Truth crushed to the earth will rise again. We are militantly committed to the truth, even when it’s uncomfortable. Especially then.

    Audacity

    I like how the scholars at Oxford put it: “a willingness to take bold risks.” I also like how the rival Cambridge scholars put it: “courage or confidence of a kind that other people find shocking or rude.” Be bold. Take risks. Make mistakes. Don’t be bombastic or uncivil, but do the things that put prosecutors and courts and even other defense attorneys on their heels. If there’s one value that truly sets us apart from the rest of the legal industry, which is so exasperatingly risk-averse, it’s our commitment to Audacity.

    Liberty

    It’s what the United States of America is (purportedly) built on. It’s what Coontz Law is (definitely) built on. We believe in freedom for our clients, our society, and ourselves. But Liberty is not freedom from all constraints. Quite the contrary: it is only through sacrifice and discipline that we can achieve true Liberty.

    Ownership

    Do your job, and do it right. And when you don’t do your job or don’t do it right, then own up to that.

    Results

    We need to get the job done, period. To get the job done, you have to put in work. That’s a nonnegotiable, table-stakes requirement. But getting great results also requires tension between the creative and the systematic, the quantitative and the qualitative, the left brain and the right brain, the yin and the yang.

    Tell the truth to yourself

    Veritas starts from within. If you can’t be honest with yourself, you can’t be honest with others. Be mindful of your strengths and weaknesses and be self-aware. Socrates said, “To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom.” It’s also required of all Coontz Law team members.

    Tell the truth to the team

    Veritas with each other is the key to everything else. And yes, this means telling hard truths, not just happy truths.

    Tell the truth to clients

    Veritas with our clients, unfortunately, sets us apart from other attorneys. If our clients have a good chance at trial, tell them that—even if you don’t feel like trying the case. If our clients are being assholes, tell them that (perhaps not in those terms, though). If our clients have to take a plea to save their lives or their families, tell them that. Whatever the truth is, the client needs to hear it, and hear it from us.

    Speak truth to power

    We do not allow innocent clients to plead guilty. Full stop. Doesn’t matter how good the plea deal is, if they are required to plead guilty when they are innocent, we will not allow it. In certain circumstances, a no-contest plea will do, but we should be careful in even allowing these types of legal fictions to persist. If the judge or the prosecutor acts unethically or illegally, we call them on it. We cross-examine lying cops—aggressively.

    Make decisions

    Indecisiveness is cowardice. Don’t let the fear of being wrong keep you from being right. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be thoughtful in your decisions—far from it!—but it does mean that you just need to make a choice. If it turns out you were wrong, you can always course-correct. But at Coontz Law, it’s better to ask forgiveness than permission.

    Act on those decisions

    Execution is all that really matters. If you make a choice but don’t act on it, then you really haven’t made a choice at all.

    Make magic, not bureaucracy

    A bit ironic to have this precept codified in an SOP, but that’s kind of the point. Systems and workflows are an integral part of running any organization. Making magic is an integral part of creating an organization that changes the world. Following the rules—even our own rules—is all well and good when the rules are just and sensible. But when they’re not, it’s time to break the rules and make some magic.

    Don't take a single 'no' for an answer

    Part of representing the accused is getting told 'no' a lot. Part of trying to sell professional services is getting told 'no' a lot. Part of working for someone else is getting told 'no' a lot. If you need the answer to be yes, you cannot let a single 'no' (or even several 'no's) deter you from getting to 'yes.'

    Do your job—whenever, wherever, however...ish.

    We live in an amazing time where knowledge work can be performed almost literally anywhere. Whether you’re in the office, at home, in a coffee shop, or on the beach, you can do most of the work you need to do. Obviously, that’s not always the case. Going to court sometimes means going to court. Being in the office means you can’t be in pajamas. Most of our work can also be done anytime, but that’s also not always the case. Hearings have certain days and times, pleadings have deadlines, clients have limited availability for meetings, and PNCs sometimes need help right-this-very-instant, no matter the time of day. Most of your work can also be done in a way that works for you, but it must be done using the tools we have as a firm.

    Don't be a slave to yourself

    Talk about telling the truth to yourself, right? We all have shortcomings and ways of getting in our own way. But it’s only through self-discipline that you can experience true Liberty. You have to identify the self-forged chains in your life and find a way to break through, to Overcome. The team and our clients are counting on you.

    Don't say 'yes' when the answer should be 'no'

    This sounds like it contradicts our fourth precept for Audacity, but it doesn’t. No is rarely the answer we should be receiving, but it’s often the one we should be giving. If someone is asking you to do something you truly don’t have the capacity for, telling them yes only sets everyone up for failure. Say no to interruptions, say no to your boss, say no to PNCs who want to pay us less money, say no to anyone who will keep you from doing your job. Side note: saying no is not the same thing as saying I can’t. No is Liberty, I can’t is limiting. There’s a big difference.

    Don't sacrifice others' Liberty for your own

    Clearing your desk doesn’t mean cluttering up someone else’s. Your just-because day off (which you are entitled to) should not fall on someone else’s preplanned vacation if that means we have to adjourn hearings or cannot answer the phone. True Liberty is shared, not hoarded.

    Obsess over the client experience

    If you start here, most things will fall into place in the end. Our firm is structured in such a way that client care is at the center. Client care is everybody’s job. Client communication is everybody’s job. Even if you’re more of a behind-the-scenes type of person, you’re responsible for the client experience. If you’re not sure what to do, a good guiding principle is to ask what will make the client experience better.

    Get answers and solve problems

    Only problem solvers can work at Coontz Law. Solving a problem can sometimes mean asking someone else at the firm who has more experience or expertise. But more often, it just requires you to FITFO: figure it the f*ck out.

    Be proactive, not reactive

    We practice criminal defense, but that doesn’t mean we only play defense. Don’t wait for a PNC to “get back to us,” don’t count on a prosecutor’s office doing our legwork for us, don’t wait for clients to call us mad after they haven’t heard from us in a few weeks. Be proactive.

    Acknowledge, fix, and learn from your mistakes

    We do the work we do because we believe in second chances. At Coontz Law, we have great people, but people are people, and people make mistakes. That’s okay as long as they lead to growth.

    Build systems around what works, and...

    ...go off script when needed

    Yes, we are a firm built on systems. They’re here in the SOPs. They’re measured with our KPIs. And those systems are well thought out. But they’re not always right. Or even when they are right, they’re not always right for the situation you find yourself in. Jazz musicians practice musical scales over and over again so that they know how to improvise in the moment. Whatever the system, follow that system every time, except when you shouldn’t.

    Be maniacal about waste, but...

    ...invest in the awe-inspiring

    What counts as waste in a 21st-century criminal-defense law firm? Paper, extra software licenses, driving to court when a virtual appearance will do, making a virtual appearance when an email will do, mediocre American teammates when we can bring on incredibly talented international teammates for a lot less money (while still paying those folks more than they’d make in their country!), time-consuming interruptions that detract from the work you should be doing in that moment, and so many other things. What doesn’t count as waste? Going above and beyond for our clients, paying above-market wages, creating a beautiful workplace, team-building exercises and meetings, spending an inordinate amount of time on creating a good legal argument, etc.

    Stand for something...

    …or you’ll fall for anything. That’s the old saying, and it’s true. We stand on our values of VALOR because we don’t want to take the easy way out for our clients. Will you stand with us?

    A VALORous Second Chance