Throughout litigation and deal making, the lawyer and the client are gaining information that allows them to understand their situation and define the problem.
Key to effective strategic decision making is to solve the right problem, and you can’t solve the right problem if you don’t understand it. Key, however, to this understanding in the context of the lawyer’s world, is an understanding of the end game; for the deal maker, it is what happens if the deal falls apart; for the litigator, it is the trial.
Each end-game analysis is essential to what defines the legal nature of the client’s problem. When the client asks, “Should I settle this case,” or “Should I enter this deal,” he is asking in part, “What are the chances of winning at trial, or what are my chances that if something goes wrong I am protected?” At the same time, the lawyer is looking for facts to help the client evaluate the nature of their problem and define the problem or deal, in relationship to the end game.