Our Relationships
A client should never have to guess what a matter will cost, nor learn the answer from an invoice. Every arrangement is set out in writing before the work begins.
Introduction
The word most firms use here is fees, which describes the invoice rather than the arrangement. What actually passes between a lawyer and a client is a relationship, entered deliberately, on terms both parties have read. The money is merely the part of it that is easiest to quantify.
Nothing at this firm therefore begins on an understanding. Conflicts are screened before a matter is discussed in substance. The engagement letter states what we are retained to do and, with equal care, what we are not; additional work is added by written amendment and never by assumption. Advance deposits sit in the firm’s trust account, are applied only against statements you have already received, and are returned when the matter closes.
What follows are the four arrangements under which the firm works, the four commitments that attach to every engagement, and an invitation to ask for the estimate before you ask for the work.
Arrangements
I
Quoted for work whose scope can be described in advance — an estate plan, a formation, a closing, a review. The figure appears in the engagement letter and does not move unless the scope does, in writing.
Used: most planning and transactional work.
II
Billed in tenths of an hour against a rate stated in the engagement letter, with an itemised statement each month showing the date, the person, the time and what was done.
Used: litigation and open-ended advisory matters.
III
A monthly sum for continuing availability — outside general counsel to a company that would rather telephone than open a matter each time a question arises.
Used: standing business clients.
IV
Available only where Florida law permits it and where it genuinely serves the client. The percentage, the treatment of costs and the point at which it is earned are stated plainly.
Used: certain injury and recovery matters.
The engagement
01
Nothing is discussed in substance until the matter has been screened. If we cannot act, we say so at once and, where we can, name someone who may.
02
The engagement letter states what the firm is retained to do and — as importantly — what it is not. Additional work is added by amendment, never by assumption.
03
Advance deposits are held in the firm’s trust account, applied only against statements you have received, and returned on the closing of the matter. The ledger is visible in your portal.
04
Rendered monthly, in plain language, with each entry attributable to a person and a task. A question about a statement is answered before it is paid, not after.
Estimates
We will tell you what a matter is likely to cost, what could change that, and where a less expensive course is available — including the course of not engaging us at all.
