Life is bargaining. This is true especially for lawyers. In his full career, a lawyer have too much bargaining to do, because he is designed to bargain. So the skill of negotiation is an indispensable quality to a lawyer.
Before going to negotiate, a lawyer have to research and learn the positions, interests and concerns of both parties. After coming into a negotiation, he have to keep careful listening to know more about the interests and concerns of his counterparty. Only after fully understanding your opposite party, shall you put forward your real offer.
To achieve a good deal, a lawyer must be well informed in the negotiation. This should be made clear to the partners of a lawyer in a negatiation, for some people are not always willing or diligent enough to furnish their partners the information they get.
Another far more important tip is that, a lawyer must understand the interests and concerns of the client he represents. It is not an easy job because with the accumulation of information, the client's interests and concerns may be in changing as well. This is very important and every lawyer in negotiation shall learn about.