Q&A

Yes AND No. Free consultations may be the norm in cases where the law firm's fees are contingent on recovery against a party we sue on your behalf, as in an auto accident case where the defendant is insured. However, a consultation fee is customary when the purpose of the initial meeting is to apply legal knowledge to specific facts and/or provide an initial legal analysis to matters that are not appropriate for a contingency fee arrangement.

Please see the question below, "What Can I Expect in an Initial Consultation?"

Our first meeting will be 30 - 45 minutes intended to accomplish three things: 1) Get to know you and understand the facts of your situation; 2) Provide a preliminary legal analysis based on the information gathered; and, 3) Outline the work that will be required by the law firm. We will identify the type of case you have, key issues, and the options you may have under the law. We will discuss whether the firm will represent you and, if so, provide you with a fee estimate.

The traditional method of billing is to charge an hourly fee for legal services. A "flat fee" is a specific, total fee that will not change.

In matters where we are familiar with the work and can reasonably estimate the effort required, we may accept a flat fee agreement. Clients benefit from flat fee agreements because the client will not be surprised by an unexpected bill. The law firm takes the risk of having to expend more time and effort than anticipated and works to complete the assignment quickly and in an efficient manner.

Unbundled legal services, also known as limited scope representation and discrete task representation, is a method of legal representation in the United States in which an attorney and client agree to limit the scope of the attorney’s involvement in a lawsuit or other legal action, leaving responsibility for those other aspects of the case to the client in order to save the client money.

In addition to the number of hours involved, we take into consideration other factors in determining our fees, including the urgency of the matter, the responsibility assumed, the novelty and difficulty of the legal problem involved, particular experience or knowledge provided, time limitations imposed by the client or matter, the results obtained, the benefit resulting to the client, and any unforeseen circumstances arising in the course of our representation.