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A lot of law firms are changing how they charge their clients and moving to fixed fees, but why? Is this a good idea, is it difficult and should you switch? These are a number of the the questions that are asked about fixed fees and in this blog we answer a lot of these questions.
Lawyers have traditionally charged their clients using hourly rate billing. Recently this way of billing has received a lot of criticism, particularly on social media. Critics assert that billable hours encourage inefficiency, fail to give clients certainty, which is what they want, and result in clients receiving surprisingly high bills. As a result, fixed fees are growing in popularity.
Switching from billable hours to fixed fees can seem daunting. It is a complete change in approach and philosophy, and the change takes considerable thought and research.
It is essential to remember that pricing and billing form part of your identity and can help to cement or damage your reputation.
So the fee structure should be a conscious choice, not something adopted simply because firms traditionally operate in a certain way.
Following litigation in England and Wales, the losing party is usually ordered to pay the legal fees of the successful party. The process of assessing the costs and deciding how much the losing party has to pay is called the detailed assessment process. (more…)
There has been a lot of debate recently about the best way to charge, fixed fees, or hourly rate. (or somewhere in between?)
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What is the future for legal costs and fees?
The legal world is changing with new firm structures and different ways of charging, so what does this mean for law firms’ fees?
Virtual firms are on the increase and hybrid working has become a normal part of legal life.
Firms are looking to move away from traditional ways of charging, to fixed fee or subscriptions
Clients’ expectations are changing causing increased fee pressures.
The introduction of fixed fees reduced the amount that firms could recover in personal injury cases.
Increased numbers of clients are challenging a law firm’s fees.
Finally when you add the proposed extension to the fixed fee scheme in litigation, it creates increased pressures on lawyer’s fees and a lot of uncertain times ahead. (more…)
Are you a perfectionist lawyer, is it a good thing or can we go too far? Does it actually make us inefficient and less productive than we should be?
Do we spend too much time looking for typos and changing words even when this does not improve the message or advice?
Kuber Ross Curve
The legal profession is changing.
How can we help lawyers and law firms accept change in culture and pricing and adjust to the new world? The Kuber Ross Model, The Five Stages of Grief, can be used to help understand the emotions involved in change and help lawyers move through emotions to process and accept change. (more…)
Clients demands and expectations in relation to legal costs and fees are changing, are you changing with them?
There have been significant changes in the legal profession over the last few years. There has been an increase in firms moving away from the traditional Partner structure and an increase in the number of law firms adopting alternative structures, with more consultancies and virtual firms.
More fee earners are working from home, and hybrid working has changed people’s perception of what is possible.
Clients’ expectations have changed.
So what does this mean for law firms? (more…)
Estimating how long something takes can be difficult, and we often underestimate how long something will take.
Accurate estimates are important in professions that charge based on time, including law, because underestimating how long something can take can result in undercharging.
Why do we get it wrong and how can we fix it? Psychologists provided the answer with a theory known as “the planning fallacy”. (more…)
Costs budgets are required in multi-track litigation. The rules and processes are complex. Our guide helps you understand what a budget is, why a budget is important and guides you through the process.through the process.
A Guide to costs budget
