Referring someone to a friend for help is a sales or marketing opportunity, because a helpful referral creates goodwill for us in the community, and goodwill piles up just like any other asset.
In this case, an executive contacted me for help on his severance agreement. I did not know him; he was a friend of a friend. Not being a lawyer—but working with them often—I was able to send him a sample agreement, and I recommended an attorney. I took the further step of calling the attorney on his behalf.
TO: Bob White
FROM: Bill Frank
DATE: November 2, 20—
RE: Separation Agreement
Seven (7) pages sent via e-mail. No originals to follow.
Bob,
I reviewed several separation agreements, and this was the simplest and easiest to understand, and it covered all the pertinent points. The others were too technical, legalistic, or punitive.
I recommend that you work with Harry Callahan to prepare your agreement. He's a seasoned expert, and Coxswain, Ecklund & Strauss has a very strong employment law department. You could attempt to draft your own release, but I'm confident Harry has a standard release he could send you that would cover the bases better.
W. H. Callahan, Esq.
Coxswain, Ecklund & Strauss
606 17th Street, STE 3055
Denver, Colorado 80202
303/555-2900
hcallahan@ces.com
I called Harry at 9:45 a.m. Saturday morning and left him a voicemail explaining the situation, and asked him to try to reach you Monday morning. Feel free to call him at any time.
Let's stay in close touch on this.
William S. Frank