To celebrate Venable's 125th birthday, we're asking our attorneys to reflect on some of the qualities that have been key to our culture and longevity. In this conversation, Ed Boyle and Stacie Tobin, co-chairs of Venable's Litigation Division, discuss the vital role curiosity plays in building client trust and winning legal strategies.
Q: Is curiosity an essential quality in a litigator?
Ed: Litigators have to approach every situation knowing we don't have all the answers. If we stay curious and open-minded—if we recognize how much we still need to learn—we're better positioned to gather the right information and use it effectively.
Stacie: It's easy to enter a case or courtroom with our own preconceptions, biases, and assumptions—but it doesn't work that way. People, businesses, and circumstances are all different. If you haven't asked the right questions, you risk being unpleasantly surprised.
Q: How do you protect curiosity in a profession that values certainty?
Ed: There's a natural tension between the desire for certainty—by both clients and lawyers—and the reality that true certainty is rare. We all want to believe we've found the perfect precedent or have the absolutely correct advice, but more often we're just getting as close as we can.
Stacie: Even when the law seems clear, applying it to your client's current situation can be unpredictable. That uncertainty is part of why so many cases settle.
Ed: The way to get there is through curiosity. No matter how familiar a situation feels, you have to begin by asking: What don't I know? What might I be wrong about? Only by going through that process can you reach a place where your advice is well founded and as certain as possible.
Q: Why would embracing a "we don't know everything" mindset make you a better lawyer?
Stacie: I don't think there's any way to truly understand what's at stake in a dispute if you haven't asked all the right questions. It's not just about gathering facts; it's about eliciting responses to those facts, uncovering emotional factors, and understanding the motives people bring to a conflict.
Ed: If you're a litigator, you're essentially a competitive storyteller. Your job is to tell the more persuasive version of events based on the same set of facts your adversary will use. You need to be inquisitive to uncover the strongest pieces for your story. The best stories come from digging deeper.
Q: Litigators are often industry agnostic when it comes to the clients they represent. How do you get up to speed when supporting a client in an area that's new to you?
Stacie: I call it being a liberal arts major—you are exposed to a wide range of topics and industries. Most clients enjoy talking about their work. Listening acutely helps us align our knowledge with their mission and desired outcomes.
Ed: As a litigator, you often need to learn something well enough to teach it clearly. That requires true mastery and the ability to explain complex ideas in plain language. It's one of the most enriching parts of a broad litigation practice—something many of us at Venable enjoy.
Q: Venable is celebrating its 125th birthday this year—what role has curiosity played as a driver of firm growth?
Stacie: If you're not asking questions—of your clients or about the broader environment—you're not going to make good decisions. I think Venable has never been afraid to ask itself, where do we want to go? What's happening in the lives and industries of our clients that signals a need for us to adapt and evolve to serve them better? We've made important decisions based on the answers to those questions, and I believe we'll continue to do so.
Curious for more? Explore Venable's Litigation Practice and visit 125 Years Young to learn more about how we're celebrating the firm's 125th birthday, explore major milestones, and read about other qualities that have enabled us to meet the needs of our clients, no matter the decade.