Non-verbal communication plays an important role in lawyer-client interactions. It includes body language, proxemics, haptics, and use of time. Lawyers should pay attention to gestures, posture, facial expressions, eye contact, and artifacts when meeting with clients. Appropriate social distance and careful use of touch can help clients feel comfortable. Punctuality and avoiding distractions demonstrate professional time management. Overall, awareness of non-verbal cues can strengthen rapport and effective communication between lawyers and those they counsel.

1. Non-Verbal Communication for
Lawyers
Kinesics, Proxemics, Haptics,
Chronemics

2. Definition
• Non-verbal communication is the transfer of
meaning without the use of verbal signals.
• More than 90% of human communication is
comprised of non-verbal cues.

3. Role of Non-verbal Communication
• Accenting: Highlighting seriousness of order or request.
Eg.: Using hand-movements to indicate
that a very important point is discussed.
• Complementing: When we are happy or sad, angry or
calm, our facial expressions show it. People try
to guess whether we are an honest person, by
reading our expressions.
• Contradicting: Sometimes we hide our emotion and anger
to look professional; also, when faced with our
enemies, we try to show the opposite of what
we are feeling in our minds. Thus, Non-verbal
communication is used to contradict our inner
feelings, for our own safety.

4. Role of Non-verbal Communication
• Regulating: When a person talks, we can
encourage him to go on, by using hand
movements. We can also ask him to stop
by showing our palm.
• Substituting: In case of language barrier, where
the sender and the receiver does not
speak a common language, sign language
is used. Also, during emergency, or in
noisy areas, we use sign language. Eg.: Fire warning
through alarm; Traffic control through lights;
police’s hand movements. In these situations, Non-
verbal Communication REPLACEs verbal language

5. Types of Non-Verbal Communication
KINESICS
PROXEMICS
HAPTICS
Chronemics
PARALANGUAGE

6. Kinesics: The study of Body Language
Kinesics
Gestures, or
Hand-
Movements
Posture
Facial
Expressions
Oculesics
Artifacts

7. Gestures
• Gestures include hand movements.
• There are basically 6 types of gestures:
1. Enumerative: When the lawyer uses fingers
to show one, two, to make the client
understand a number-related information
better.
2. Descriptive: When the client uses hand
movements to indicate “big”, “small”, “tall”,
etc shapes and sizes.

8. Gesture types contd.
3. Locative: When the lawyer uses finger to
show the client where to sign; or when the
assistant points finger to direct the client to
the lawyer’s chamber.
4. Emphatic: When the lawyer uses hand
movements to stress a very important point to
the client.

9. Gesture Types continued
5. Adaptive: Used by people when under pressure.
Like, scratching the head; touching the nose;
pinching the lips; playing with pen; shaking legs.
All these indicate tension, or even attempts to tell
a lie.
6. Symbolic: Gestures like “Namaste”, “Adaab”, to
greet a client. They are culture specific. The
lawyer must greet the client according to the
norms of the client’s culture. Or else, cultrual
barrier may occur.

10. Symbolic Gesture leading to
Cultural Gap

11. Posture
It refers to the way we hold ourselves when we sit,
stand or walk.
Posture of non-confidence: Generally displayed by
the client; shoulder held loose; head, down; arms
crossed at chest; hands joined in front. Legs
crossed.
Posture of confidence: The lawyer must be straight
in back; shoulder held firm; arms and hand are in
held firmly near the body. All these show
attentiveness. Also, the lawyer need to bend
towards the client a little, to show attention.

12. Lawyer and Client: Different postures

13. Facial Expressions
• Facial expression reveals our attitude to a person.
It also indicates our mood—whether we are
angry or sad or otherwise.
• The Lawyer has to keep control over excessive
facial expressions. He/she may be personally
shocked by some statements made by the client.
But his/her over-reaction may stop the client
from speaking further; or may encourage the
client to speak on irrelevant details.
• A expression indicating “genuine concern” will
help the lawyer connect with the client.

14. Facial Expression of Genuine Concern

15. Oculesics: Eye contact
Oculesics is the study of Eye-movement.
The lawyer should, at all point, maintain eye contact with
the client.
Note-taking should be adjusted accordingly, so that the
eye-contact is not broken too often.
Eye-movements of the client may indicate whether he is
lying or stating truth
Also, the lawyer should consider the cultural background
of the client. Some cultures, eg, rural India, does not
permit women to make frequent eye-contact with
people from outside the family.

16. Rural women avoiding Direct eye-
contact in a public rally.

17. Artifacts
People have a tendency to judge by first look.
Our height, weight, our hair, skin-quality, teeth—
everything is judged.
A physically-fit and well-maintained look gives a
good impression on the client.
Also, the kind of dress we wear should be
conservative. It is always wise to avoid skin-
revealing clothes during a counseling.
Also, jewelries should be kept at minimum.
No strong perfume is to be worn during meeting.

18. Artifacts: Objects of Style
• Clothes & shoes
• Watches and bags
• Jewelry
• Glasses
• Bangles
• Perfume
• Phones and other gadgets

19. Proxemics: Study of distance
Social distance is maintained by us with other
individuals, depending upon the nature of
relationship with the persons concerned.

20. Intimate Space [45 cm]
• Up to two fists away
from your body
• People emotionally
close to us are allowed
to enter.
• Non-intimate people
deliberately enter this
zone to harass or
threaten us.

21. Friendly Space [45cm – 1.2 meter]: Shared by
family members and close friends.
When we allow others to touch us. Violations happen
when non-friend people come to that zone

22. Social Space: [1.2m -3.6m]
Shared by colleagues

23. Audience Zone [more than 3.6m]

24. Lawyer-Client Proxemics
It falls in social space.
It is a good idea to have chairs that are closely
spaced, for counseling.
Too much distance will discourage the client to
come up with confidential details.
However, too close a distance may make the
lawyer look unprofessional.
So, close-spaced chairs, between 1.5-4.5 meters
is ideal.

25. Haptics
Haptics indicates ‘Touch Communication’.
It is used to show fellow-feeling, support,
empathy, when used in positive way.

26. Haptics in Counseling
• Haptics is to be used very carefully while
counseling.
• It is helpful to console an emotional client by
touching his/her arms / shoulders.
• However, culture may play a role in touch
perception. If the client comes from a culture
where he/she does not touch /shake hands
with strangers, haptics is best avoided.

27. Chronemics: Time Language
Our punctuality sends a positive message to our
clients.
A lawyer can insist the client to come on time, and
to complete the counseling in time, only when
she/he is punctual.
Also, multitasking is a bad idea during counseling.
So, both parties—the lawyer and the client,
should keep their mobiles on silent mode. This is
the time-language of professionals.