For 100 years, we’ve grown alongside our clients by standing with their families, businesses, and communities. To us, “rooted in relationships” is the quiet, consistent work of showing up, listening closely, and earning the right to be there for the next chapter.
Over time, we move beyond attorney-client engagement, instead building out partnerships shaped by shared history, hard conversations, and a deep understanding of what matters most. Attorney Mary Shearen has been with the firm for over 35 years. As she puts it, “We follow in the footsteps of people who understood and expected that you were going to be a good lawyer. You had to be a good lawyer, but you also had to really understand the client and have the client’s best interests at heart, and not your own.”
What Long-Term Trust Really Looks Like
A strong client relationship at Best & Flanagan rarely begins and ends with a single issue or transaction. More often, it evolves gradually from “call us when something goes wrong” to “call us before you decide what comes next.”
That evolution changes the nature of the counsel the firm is able to provide.
Over time, our attorneys come to understand not only the legal structure of a business, but the family dynamics behind it. We learn where an organization hopes to be in ten years, not simply what it needs this quarter. We begin anticipating questions before clients ask them.
When that level of trust exists, the relationship feels less like hiring outside counsel and more like having a steady, informed voice in the room when important decisions are being made. As someone who has also been a part of Best & Flanagan for over 35 years, attorney Steve Kruger notes, “I think with these long-term relationships, the clients know that they can trust us and that we care for them.”
These real relationships put shape around a simple idea: the advice gets better as the understanding gets deeper.
Building Trust Early—and Keeping It
Trust rarely begins with a major legal victory. More often, it begins with smaller moments that signal reliability and care: Returning the call. Remembering the details. Giving a direct answer, even when the answer is difficult.
In the early stages of a relationship, attorneys often spend significant time listening not just to the legal issue at hand, but to the concerns, uncertainties, and “what ifs” that may never appear in a contract or term sheet. Over the years, that trust is strengthened through consistency, candor, and presence.
Consistency means clients see familiar faces year after year—people who understand their history and notice what has changed. Candor means telling clients what they need to hear, not simply what they hope to hear. Presence means showing up not only for milestones and successes, but also during disputes, downturns, transitions, and loss.
Clients learn they do not need to start from the beginning every time they call, because our attorneys already understand the context, the relationships, and what is truly at stake. As Steve explains, “We’re not engaged in just a transactional practice. Of course, we provide services and, in exchange, are paid for what we do. But it’s really more about how we can accomplish a client’s objectives long term.”
What Only Time Can Teach
There are things no intake form can capture. After years—or decades—of working together, Best & Flanagan’s lawyers develop a deeper map of a client’s world:
- Which risks keep them up at night, and which they are comfortable managing
- How decisions actually get made in the organization or family
- Where compromise is possible, and where a line will not be crossed
That depth changes the advice. “Over that period of time with these folks, you really develop significant personal relationships that enable you to do your work a lot better,” says Steve.
When a new opportunity or dispute arises, the firm is not starting from zero; it can move directly to what will work for this client, in this season, with these pressures.
Sometimes, that means advising against a deal that looks attractive on paper but would strain a family, organization, or community beyond what it can bear. Other times, it means encouraging a client to take a bold step—because the relationship has revealed their capacity to lead through the change.
How We Measure Our Legacy
As Best & Flanagan marks its centennial year, the firm’s legacy is measured not only in years of practice, but in connections that have endured across generations. As Mary reflects, “It’s really rewarding. If it weren’t for that, I don’t know that I would feel the same way about my practice or career because you feel like you really have made a huge difference in that family and how things went for them.”
Clients return because they know that when they pick up the phone, they will reach someone who understands their history, appreciates what is at stake, and is committed to helping protect what comes next. Steve describes it simply: “The people I’ve worked with for many, many years, I really like them … I mean, they’re clients and we have the professional responsibilities and duties that are associated with that. But I feel close to them. I care for them. I like them.”
Best & Flanagan is celebrating 100 years of serving clients, businesses, and communities with a people-first approach to law. Learn more at bestlaw.com/100-years.