Comments on: broadening the hourly-billing debate — consider yourself, your clients and your ethics http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-debate-consider-yourself-your-clients/ breathless punditry and one-breath poetry with David Giacalone Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:58:52 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Blawg Review # 126 » Small Business Trends http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-debate-consider-yourself-your-clients/comment-page-1/#comment-50592 Blawg Review # 126 » Small Business Trends Mon, 17 Sep 2007 18:23:05 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-deba#comment-50592 [...] Billing by the hour has been the traditional way that lawyers (and other professionals) billed their time, but recently the billable hour has come under attack. David Giacalone at the f/k/a blog points out that some suggested alternatives to the billable hour may make clients and lawyers alike worse off. [...] [...] Billing by the hour has been the traditional way that lawyers (and other professionals) billed their time, but recently the billable hour has come under attack. David Giacalone at the f/k/a blog points out that some suggested alternatives to the billable hour may make clients and lawyers alike worse off. [...]

]]> By: SPASLAW.COM › Customizing Fees (And Enjoying Watching Our Kids Play Soccer) http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-debate-consider-yourself-your-clients/comment-page-1/#comment-47702 SPASLAW.COM › Customizing Fees (And Enjoying Watching Our Kids Play Soccer) Mon, 10 Sep 2007 04:32:35 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-deba#comment-47702 [...] the subject, including those I’ve listed below. There’s also f/k/a’s insightful Broadening the Hourly-Billing Debate - Consider Yourself, Your Client And Your Ethics. Must-reads are The Billable Hour: Are Its Days Numbered? from www.law.com earlier quoted and The [...] [...] the subject, including those I’ve listed below. There’s also f/k/a’s insightful Broadening the Hourly-Billing Debate – Consider Yourself, Your Client And Your Ethics. Must-reads are The Billable Hour: Are Its Days Numbered? from http://www.law.com earlier quoted and The [...]

]]> By: Vickie Pynchon http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-debate-consider-yourself-your-clients/comment-page-1/#comment-41088 Vickie Pynchon Wed, 29 Aug 2007 08:10:54 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-deba#comment-41088 The idea that first years might have a year free of billing was not to suggest that they are incapable of providing legal services worth billing for. A billing-free year would give a first-year associate the freedom to, say, write a simple motion, from scratch, for which the firm undoubtedly has forms; or watch his/her superior argue the more complex motion for which s/he provided only the legal memorandum; or to observe the entire deposition for which s/he analyzed and organized the pertinent documents. Because most of these hours can't be billed, first years are often deprived of the opportunity to see a motion from conception to resolution let alone to experience a case from client interview to complaint to trial, arbitration or mediated settlement. A first year free of billables would enable a deeper and broader initial year of experience for a new lawyer, justifying a more substantial billing rate for a firm's second year associates. If our attempts to create new ways of monetizing our services and training our young lawyers are not "silly," or, even better, "outrageous," "patently unworkable," or "absurd," we're not likely to achieve the kind of change necessary to substantially improve client relations and lawyer satisfaction. Let's aspire to lunacy in our brainstorming so that we can hope for an inspired transformation rather than simply a slight improvement. Cheers, Vickie The idea that first years might have a year free of billing was not to suggest that they are incapable of providing legal services worth billing for. A billing-free year would give a first-year associate the freedom to, say, write a simple motion, from scratch, for which the firm undoubtedly has forms; or watch his/her superior argue the more complex motion for which s/he provided only the legal memorandum; or to observe the entire deposition for which s/he analyzed and organized the pertinent documents. Because most of these hours can’t be billed, first years are often deprived of the opportunity to see a motion from conception to resolution let alone to experience a case from client interview to complaint to trial, arbitration or mediated settlement. A first year free of billables would enable a deeper and broader initial year of experience for a new lawyer, justifying a more substantial billing rate for a firm’s second year associates. If our attempts to create new ways of monetizing our services and training our young lawyers are not “silly,” or, even better, “outrageous,” “patently unworkable,” or “absurd,” we’re not likely to achieve the kind of change necessary to substantially improve client relations and lawyer satisfaction. Let’s aspire to lunacy in our brainstorming so that we can hope for an inspired transformation rather than simply a slight improvement. Cheers, Vickie

]]> By: David Giacalone http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-debate-consider-yourself-your-clients/comment-page-1/#comment-35705 David Giacalone Sun, 19 Aug 2007 00:22:02 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-deba#comment-35705 You are very welcome, Susan. I would very much like to hear what approaches and standards solos and other lawyers are using in establishing fees through value-billing. Realworld examples and satisfied clients should be publicized. You are very welcome, Susan. I would very much like to hear what approaches and standards solos and other lawyers are using in establishing fees through value-billing. Realworld examples and satisfied clients should be publicized.

]]> By: Susan Cartier Liebel http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-debate-consider-yourself-your-clients/comment-page-1/#comment-35696 Susan Cartier Liebel Sun, 19 Aug 2007 00:13:26 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-deba#comment-35696 Thank you for kicking this discussion up a notch. I will be adding your post to mine to broaden the discussion from every direction. Incidentally, there are lawyers (solos) who are doing value-billing litigation in their practices exclusively and doing it very successfully. I'll be happy to put you in contact one of them if you are interested. I agree, most people eschew the concept. But because the definition of 'alternative' and 'value' are so subjective it is hard to pinpoint it. Best to see it in action. Thank you for kicking this discussion up a notch. I will be adding your post to mine to broaden the discussion from every direction. Incidentally, there are lawyers (solos) who are doing value-billing litigation in their practices exclusively and doing it very successfully. I’ll be happy to put you in contact one of them if you are interested. I agree, most people eschew the concept. But because the definition of ‘alternative’ and ‘value’ are so subjective it is hard to pinpoint it. Best to see it in action.

]]> By: Stephanie West Allen http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-debate-consider-yourself-your-clients/comment-page-1/#comment-35632 Stephanie West Allen Sat, 18 Aug 2007 18:56:51 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2007/08/18/broadening-the-hourly-billing-deba#comment-35632 Did you see Gerry Riskin's post of this morning on this topic? Here: http://www.gerryriskin.com/law-firm-economics-in-memory-of-the-billable-hour.html Did you see Gerry Riskin’s post of this morning on this topic? Here:

http://www.gerryriskin.com/law-firm-economics-in-memory-of-the-billable-hour.html

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