James F Haggerty

John Wiley & Sons, 20.95

Sue Stapely

A survey recently undertaken by Jim Haggerty's PR company of the top 200 corporate law departments in the US revealed that nearly 50% use public relations techniques when involved in litigation - and nearly 23% use PR either 'often' or 'always'.

It will not be long before litigation PR is an accepted part of business practice in the UK too and Mr Haggerty's book is of particular value to any lawyer or firm involved in transatlantic litigation.

Written in a refreshingly straightforward and clear style, with heavy reliance on high-profile cases in which he has advised, Mr Haggerty brings considerable personal authority to bear on the topic.

An attorney turned PR practitioner, his pragmatic and unsensational approach is clearly influenced by his experience as a lawyer.

It seems there are many parallels on both sides of the Atlantic.

Mr Haggerty dreads the phrases 'the best response is "no comment"', 'we'll fight this case in the courtroom where it really matters', and 'don't worry, my attorney will handle the press'.

As is too often the case here too, he gets messages on the lines of 'we're working on something that may need your services, I'll give you a call if it blows up'.

It is always safe to assume that if the call does not come until the matter 'blows up', that call is too late.

Mr Haggerty's guide includes checklists, guidance on how to broker a productive working relationship between lawyers, clients and PR professionals, building your message and the credibility of your case and managing the media frenzy at court.

His expertise is woefully absent from the work of many dabbling in the media handling of legal cases, both lawyers without communications training and PR professionals without the benefit of legal training.

Sue Stapely is a solicitor, issues management consultant and author of Media Relations for Lawyers (to be published by the Law Society on 3 September)