Obedience school for lawyers: a consumer's guide to hiring, firing and negotiating with a lawyer - includes related articles on prepaid legal plans and on legal resources - Tutorial

Home Office Computing, Feb, 1993 by Wesley J. Smith

1. How are you to be charged? If you are charged an hourly rate, the agreement may also provide for the payment of flat fees for specified services. For example, you may pay a flat fee if your lawyer attends court, regardless of the time it actually takes.

2. Is there a retainer fee? Retainer fees differ, but general retainer fees cover a predictable amount of legal work performed on a regular basis.

3. Does the lawyer charge minimum billing units? To keep billing from becoming too complicated, lawyers usually bill in tenths of hours (six minutes). This is reasonable. However, some lawyers put a clause in their retainer agreements allowing them to charge "minimum billing units." For example, if the retainer agreement states that the minimum charge to be made to your file is three-tenths of an hour, that means that each time the lawyer works on your file, there will be a minimum charge of 18 minutes, even if the work performed took only 10 minutes. Lawyers commonly use unreasonable minimum billing units to pad their bills.

4. Is the lawyer permitted to raise the fee? Your retainer agreement should specify when and under what circumstances the lawyer can raise the fee. Generally, lawyers give a 30-day notice before the fee hike takes effect, so you will have time to find a new lawyer should you desire.

5. Are you responsible for the lawyer's expenses? Increasingly, lawyers are charging their clients for expenses once considered to be part of the attorney's overhead. Photocopying, secretarial time, and parking expenses can add up quickly.

Don't be afraid to negotiate terms of the agreement so that you get the best deal possible. For example, if the lawyer asks for a $2,000 retainer fee, you may offer $1,000 instead. If the lawyer wants you to pay a flat fee for court appearances, you may state that you will pay only for the amount of time actually spent performing the service. If the lawyer wants to charge a full fee for travel time, think about offering to pay half the usual fee.

It's important to receive a detailed monthly billing statement. Never accept a legal bill that states, "$250 for services rendered." After all, you wouldn't pay a restaurant bill that read, "$80 for food eaten." The bill should tell you the following:

* The date a service was rendered

* The time spent on the service

* The amount charged for the service

* Expenses incurred on your behalf

* Credits for payments made during the month

* The total amount due or credit remaining on the file

* The period of time covered by the bill

DISPUTING A BILL, SUING FOR MALPRACT]CE

The fly in the ointment of the attorney-client relationship usually involves fee disputes. "The most common problems clients have with lawyers is the lack of communication over billing," says Theresa Meehan Rudy, director of education and research for HALT, a legal-reform nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C. "Many clients aren't told and don't ask what is billed and how many hours a legal problem will take for resolution. This results in misunderstandings and legal bills that are higher than they need to be."