Not likely. I bill each client each month; that is the only recompense I receive from clients. I have received gifts from people that I provided services to on an ex gratia basis but, generally, I regift those to members of my staff.

There might be some who would consider you a cheap bastard for regifting or perhaps passing yourself off as a lawyer who has ethics

My staff know where they came from. Regifting was the wrong term; people hand them to me and I then immediately hand them to others. Being cheap would be keeping them for myself

We usually get quite a few "gifts" from clients and most managers open them in the lunch room and let everyone enjoy them - that includes the booze. There are always a few cheap bastards that keep them for themselves but to each their own.

How about this bit of out of the box thinking.
I wonder if the financial investment wizards, gurus or whatever they call themselves give their investors back money if their portfolios LOST money I tend to think the answer might be NO.

I'm talking about people you interact with frequently not some dopey **** you'll only have contact with once. For instance, if you eat at a local restaurant a lot then tip well or they'll spit in your food. If its some place you'll never go back to, give them 10% and **** them. Same with things like barbers, postmen, bin-men, local garage etc.

Bank Branch managers back in the UK used to do a similar thing with some of the booze received from company customers to the staff at Christmas. Seems a normal thing to do when you have an excess - obviously they kept some choice ones to themselves but fair play.

Ah but this dopey **** has the power to inflict some degree of damage that I was referring to
See that guy over there who has just tied up his boat and was fishing on the US side maybe we should go over and check him out. We could search his boat from stem to stern which might take several hours, cut open all his fish to ensure there is nothing hidden in them. Does it look like he is having trouble bending over or walking? mmm perhaps he has something shoved up his rectum so maybe we should detain him and have him sent to the hospital for an examination

To the OP.....like yeah

• postal delivery person, garbage crew, your grocery store checkout crew, your kids school teacher, petrol station attendant et al

Ah but would you be so petty and spiteful?

Sort of like travellers who complain about us because they are pissed off that we seized their goods or made them pay duties and taxes or examined their baggage?
Im sorry sir but with these criminal convictions you are inadmissible into Canada and you will not be admitted.
In the complaint letter to follow Im sure there will be a paragraph on how dare I call them a criminal and that they are a law abiding person.
You mean that sort of pettiness and spite

That's not a tip, that's a bribe and its surprising how cheap they are.

Ah I see you belong to the two wrongs do make a right school of thought.

Oh thank you so much for your responses. I do buy my kids teacher something, and have often given my garage mechanic a bottle of scotch, and the lady in the bank a box of something, but that's cos I wanted to. Evidently they don't come and bang on the door here and demand, with an official receipt book in hand, which we had before. It's all those things that catch you out, when you just don't know what the drill is.

At 3.00am???

One year we had a card from the paper deliverererererer but I include a tip monthly instead, so the right person gets it instead of someone different who might help out at xmas.

Nobody calls.