Working Across Differences: Strengthening the Attorney-Client Relationship
On September 30, Crossroads For Florida Kids welcomed Dr. Arin N. Reeves, President and Managing Director of Nextions LLC, to the Chester H. Ferguson Law Center for a lunchtime CLE, “Working Across Differences: Strengthening Attorney-Client Relationships.” Co-sponsored by the Hillsborough County Bar Association’s DEI Committee, the program was open to Crossroads volunteers and attorneys from across the Tampa Bay legal community.
The interactive session looked at how differences in race, gender, socioeconomic background, culture, and lived experience shape the attorney-client relationship. Those differences affect what attorneys communicate, what clients hear, and how much a client is willing to trust and share. For young people in foster care and crossover systems, prior experiences with adults and systems may already shape what they expect from an attorney before the first meeting.
Grounded in trauma-informed principles, the program challenged a common instinct: building rapport by searching for surface-level similarities. Instead, attorneys learned to anchor the relationship in shared goals such as safety, stability, and long-term success, which hold true regardless of background. The shift moves an attorney’s focus from finding common ground to aligning on outcomes.
Participants also practiced curiosity-driven questioning, an approach that replaces assumptions with questions that deepen understanding and rapport without triggering defensiveness or shame. Using concrete examples, the session showed how experiences vary across communities and ended with strategies attorneys could put to use right away.
Dr. Reeves is a nationally recognized researcher and best-selling author on leadership and workplace culture. A sociologist, she has spent more than 25 years advising corporations, global law firms, government agencies, nonprofits, and academic institutions. Her research covers ethical influence, equity and belonging, implicit bias, cultural integration, and organizational transformation. She is the author of five books, including The Next IQ, One Size Never Fits All, and Ethical Influence Under Pressure: Choosing Integrity to Create Change That Endures.
She also speaks to attorneys from experience. Dr. Reeves began her career as an attorney and went on to teach law and society at Northwestern University, where she earned her doctorate in sociology. She is a Fulbright Specialist and the creator of The JEDI Collective. Born in India and raised in several countries, she brings a perspective shaped by moving between cultures.
Dr. Reeves thinks highly of the work Crossroads does and was glad to meet the attorneys who help our young clients overcome the obstacles in their path.
Attendees earned 1.0 hour of General CLE credit, including 0.5 hour of Professionalism and 0.5 hour of Mental Health and Wellness credit under the Professional Responsibility requirement. If you missed the session, you can still view the presentation for CLE credit [here].
Crossroads For Florida Kids provides legal advocacy and support for youth in the foster care and dependency systems, and our work depends on a strong legal community. We are grateful to Dr. Reeves, to the HCBA DEI Committee for co-sponsoring, and to everyone who joined us.
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