Flat-fee billing settles in; billable hour stays king - bizjournals:

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Specifically, they want to know more about flat-feee billing, a method that can proves more client-friendly than hourly billing. Some attorneyxs say billing by the hour serves neithefr clients nor the legal profession as well as charging uniformm fees based onprovided services. Law firm s in this article refused to divulge theirhourly fees, but the median hourly billable rate in Oregon is $230 per Attorneys average 123 billable hoursx per month, according to the Oregon Statde Bar. While requests for flat-fee billinbg come from clients ofall sizes, not all clientzs merit it. “It’s a growing trend amont larger clients,” said Wally Van managing partnerfor Portland’s .
“Those with largert volumes of work think they can price it in a way that makews sense to bothof us. But for mid-sized and early-stagew companies, firms are less receptivs to those type of While Stoel Rives mulls more requestsfor flat-fee billing and also volume discounts, other attorneys have embraced new ideas. “I’d like to do it if I can figured out a way to do it withougtgoing broke,” said Peter Appleton, a Salem-based sole proprieto specializing in business issues. “Look at the medical They charge certain amounts for certain operations becaus e they know in advance how much time it takezs todo it.
“Ivf I were a client, I would definitely want at least for simple things like wills andestates planning.” Ambrose Law Group LLC, a Portland-based bankinf and financial specialist, has bille d via flat fees for 10 Chris Ambrose said the group continually modifies its fee structures, but tendz to use flat-fee billing for such services as loan documentation and draftinb development agreements. It does not offer the optionm when working on cases that likely requirew litigation because such cases can drag on for Thefirm hasn’t experienced majodr revenue effects, be they positive or but retains a loyal client “It gives them predictability,” Ambrosw said.
“One of the biggest problems in the legao field is surprise billing,” The debate over alternative billing methodws comes as clients seek to slash expenses durinhg tough economic times. The state’s unemployment rate continues to exceerd 12 percent andeven , known for doling out work to most of Portland’x larger legal firms, laid off 500 workersx on May 14. Using flat-fee billing doesn’t necessaril mean a firm will makeless money. The Shepherdf Law Group, in Boston, began using flat-feew billing on Jan. 1, 2007. Revenue that year rose by 250 percent comparedto 2006.
The firm’s 2008 revenue also states a July 2008 article in the Americabn BarAssociation Journal. many law firms have resisted the urge to chargedflat fees. Firms typically requirre their attorneys towork 1,800 billablew hours before issuing bonuses. Most legal billing is done on an hourly basis and chargedin six-minute increments. However, Lewis Horowitz, the Portland-based presidenft of Northwest law firm LanePowell PC, said the industrgy tends to police itself. “Lawyers have trouble dointg anythingbut top-quality work,” he “That’s why they prefer to get paid by the hour: Because if they uncover an issue, they want to fix it.
” Nonetheless, Lane Powell also want to keep its clients happy, allowing certain largefr clients that have been with the firm for many years to pay flat One of them is a real estate outfit that’s currently working on 50 deals. Anothere is a commercial Realtor that hopes torenegotiate 2,00o leases. A third client is a largwe employer that asks about 100 questions a year on equal opportunity employment. The flat fee amounts vary. Horowitz offered this hypothetica example: If billed hourly, some employmengt questions may cost as muchas $20,00p to resolve, if they require Others can cost as little as $3,000.
So a law firm migh charge flat fees ofabout $8,000 for advice on equal opportunity employment. “It worksd best with clients with whom you have a good Horowitz said. “And it’s not made availablw on a one-time basis. We know about these matters and know which ones mighg explode and becomereal litigation.” The American Bar Associationn is looking into ways to encourage more firms to chargr flat fees.