Have you ever had a conversation with someone who simply could not look you in the eye? The conversation itself may have been perfectly pleasant. The person may have been intelligent, friendly, and articulate. Yet something felt off. Their eyes darted toward the floor, the wall, or somewhere over your shoulder. No matter what you were discussing, they seemed unable or unwilling to meet your gaze.

Most of us have had this experience at some point. And when we do, questions may begin to creep into our minds. Is this person nervous? Are they uncomfortable? Are they hiding something? Did I offend them?

To be clear, a lack of eye contact should not be taken as evidence that something is wrong with the other person. People avoid eye contact for many reasons, including shyness, anxiety, cultural norms, or neurodiversity. Yet there is a reason we instinctively react to it. Human beings have evolved to use eye contact as an important social signal. We often associate it with confidence, attentiveness, sincerity, and trustworthiness.

Researchers who study communication have found that those instincts are not entirely misplaced. Appropriate eye contact can strengthen relationships, improve communication, increase perceptions of credibility, and instill confidence. For lawyers, whose success often depends on trust and effective communication, that makes eye contact more than a social nicety. It may be one of the most underrated professional skills we possess.

Consider the client interview. Most clients are not sitting in a lawyer’s office because life is going particularly well. They are often facing uncertainty, conflict, financial stress, or one of the most significant problems they have ever encountered. During those meetings, clients are evaluating more than legal competence. They are deciding whether they trust the person sitting across from them.

A lawyer who maintains appropriate eye contact communicates attention and interest. The message is simple: “I am listening, and what you are saying matters.” That message can help build trust long before the lawyer offers any legal advice.

Eye contact can also improve a lawyer’s effectiveness when gathering information. Communication involves much more than words. Facial expressions, hesitation, uncertainty, and emotional reactions often reveal information that never appears in a transcript or written statement.

This can be particularly important during depositions and witness interviews. A witness may briefly look away before answering a difficult question. A client may display discomfort when discussing a particular event. An opposing party may react unexpectedly when a key document is introduced. Lawyers who remain visually engaged are often better positioned to notice those clues and pursue them with follow-up questions.

There is also a leadership lesson here. Lawyers spend considerable time supervising associates, mentoring younger lawyers, and managing staff. In those conversations, people want more than instructions. They want to feel heard and valued.

One of the simplest ways to communicate respect is to give another person your full attention. Appropriate eye contact signals engagement and presence. It tells the other person that, at least for the next few minutes, they have your attention.

Of course, eye contact is not about staring. Excessive eye contact can feel uncomfortable or confrontational. Cultural norms and individual preferences vary. The goal is not to lock eyes with another person throughout an entire conversation. The goal is simply to be present and engaged.

Lawyers spend enormous amounts of time developing legal knowledge and technical skills. Those skills are essential. But many qualities like trust, credibility, empathy, and connection are communicated through small behaviors that often go unnoticed.

The next time you meet with a client, interview a witness, negotiate a settlement, or mentor a colleague, pay attention to where you are looking. You may discover that one of the most powerful communication tools available is also one of the simplest.