Most complaints come down to communication and managing client expectations. Choose to ignore this essential skill at your peril. Learn practical strategies for setting realistic expectations, handling difficult conversations, and maintaining trust – an essential skill for every litigation lawyer navigating client relationships.
Thursday, 26 February 2026
Description
Attend and earn 1 CPD unit in Professional Skills
This program is applicable to practitioners from all States & Territories
Professional Skills
1.00pm to 2.00pm Managing Client Expectations
- Who is the client and whose expectations are you managing?
- First impressions: how to be honest, realistic, and still get the business
- Does what you’re doing match what your client thinks you’re doing?
- How to break bad news without overly discouraging the client
- Handling client disappointment and over-enthusiasm
- War stories and real-world examples
Presented by Jason Neo, Special Counsel, Longton Blackwell
Chair:
Darrell Kake, Partner, Longton Blackwell
Presenters
Darrell Kake, Partner, Longton BlackwellDarrell is a partner at Longton Blackwell and has been exceeding client expectations in commercial litigation matters for many years. Darrell is accredited by both the Law Society of NSW and the Queensland Law Society as an accredited specialist in commercial litigation. He is a member of the NSW Law Society’s Specialist Accreditation Commercial Litigation Advisory Committee and was previously the equivalent in Queensland. Darrell is an adjunct lecturer in the College of Law’s specialist Masters of Law (LLM) in Commercial Litigation and was an infantry officer in the Australian Army Reserve for over 20 years. Darrell believes that honesty, transparency, two-way communication and an obsession with record keeping bordering on OCD are key traits for legal practitioners seeking to perfect their client expectation management game.
Jason Neo, Special Counsel, Longton Blackwell
Jason Neo is accredited by the Law Society of NSW as a specialist in family law and is especially experienced in representing clients involved in high conflict and complex property settlement cases. One of Jason’s recent cases involved assets located in 3 countries worth more than $200 million and allegations of non-disclosure and financial impropriety over a period of more than 20 years by both parties. In addition to property settlement cases, Jason also accepts instructions and is experienced in appearing for clients in parenting and criminal law cases. In his criminal law practice, he has appeared for clients in contested hearings in the Local Court of NSW and in trials in the District Court of NSW and Western Australia. Jason completed his Bachelor of Laws (with Distinction) at Murdoch University in Western Australia and his Graduate Certificate in Legal Practice (with Merit) at the Australian National University. While undertaking his studies, Jason represented Murdoch University in national and international mooting competitions and worked in internship roles in a number of law firms and Courts in Singapore, Perth and Sydney, including as a judicial intern at the Supreme Court of Singapore. Originally from Singapore, Jason is fluent in English, Mandarin, Cantonese and Taiwanese. He is also conversant in Bahasa Malaysia. Due to his language capacity, Jason takes pride in being able to serve clients from different communities who speak little or no English in an efficient and cost-effective manner.
This seminar is part of a series
Essential Litigation Skills Series: AI, Client Expectations & Privilege
Need to update your litigation skills? Attend one or all 3 across lunch and navigate the challenges in your litigation practice. Empower yourself to manage disputes strategically and uphold professional standards under pressure. From navigating modern litigation practice through to AI capabilities, managing client exceptions or mastering procedure, these skills are critical for delivering results, protecting clients' interests and managing a successful practice.
Description
Attend the full series and earn 3 CPD units in Professional Skills
This program is applicable to practitioners from all States & Territories
If you register for the full series as a live online product after the date of an individual session, you will be sent the recording for the sessions that have passed. Alternatively, you can register for individual sessions by following the links below.
View series listing
