Law Management Chapter 6

what are the two arguments for referral fees

1. clients benefit by being referred to the most competent attorney 2. clients are protected from increases fees by other rules of professional conduct

according to model rule 7.2 what are the three occasions when an attorney may pay a referral fee

1. for advertising purposes 2. for a lawyer referral service 3. payment of a law practice

according to model rule 5.4, what are the three occasions when lawyer may share legals fees with a non lawyer

1. it is payment to a lawyer's widow or widower after the lawyer's death 2. a lawyer purchases a law practice of a deceased or disabled lawyer 3. the firm has a profit sharing or retirement plan of employees

what are some examples of soft costs

1. photocopies 2. outside services. 3. supplies. 4. storage of documents 5. postage

what are the four arguments against referral fees

1. the fee may increase the client's bill 2. referral fees have a damaging effect on lawyer's image 3. most clients are offended by referral fees 4. referral fees are beneath the divinity of the profession

why are written fee agreements desirable

1. they prevent misunderstanding. 2. they enhance the attorney client relationship

what are the two reasons that the ABA established rules and guidelines concerning legal fees

1. to preserve the effectiveness,s integrity, and independence of the profession. 2. to give society reasonable access to the legal system

what has case law ruled that a person must have to quote fees

a person must have a law school education to quote fees

what is the lodestar calculation

accomplished by determine the number of hours reasonably spent in a case and applying the attorney's hourly rate

what are value based fees

according to the value of the outcome to the client

what are multipliers

additional fees

what ty of fee must be in writing according to model rule 1.5

all contingency fees must be in writing

what are combination fees

all types of fees

what is a retaining lien

allow a lawyer to retain papers, money, or other property received from a client until the lawyer is paid the fee

in addition to a charging lien and a retaining lien, what else may a lawyer do to secure payment of fees

an attorney may secure payment of fees by having the client sign a promissory note secured by a deed on the client's property

what is a refundable retainer

applied to the total fee and is refundable if the client terminate the attorney client relationship

how are flat fees established

attorney's and paralegal's time is estimated and hourly rates are applied to the time estimate for completion of the case

what is the difference between the gross fee method and the net fee method of calculation

attorney's fee is deducted before the costs in the gross fee method. in the net fee method, the attorney's fee is calculated after deducting costs

whose responsibility is it to set fees

attorneys or law firm management

what is a blended hourly rate

average hourly rate of the people working on the case

what is a contingency fee

based on the percentage of the client's recovery of the case

what are soft costs

cannot be directly attributable to a client's cases until applied to the clients case

what is a per diem flat-fee

charged by an attorney for a day's work

what are the two types of liens that an attorney may place to secure payment of fees

charing lien and retaining lien

what are hourly fees

clients are charged by the hour for each hour or portion of an hour spent on the case

what type of fee calculation gives the client the most money

contingency fee is calculate by the net fee method

what is the difference between costs of litigation and expenses of litigation

costs are recoverable by the prevailing party in some cases

what are hard costs

directly attributable to the client's case, such as filing fees, service fees

what is task based billing

each task is given a specific fee or hourly rate

why do many firms use nonrefundable retainers

ensure client loyalty to the firm and to test a client's commitment to a case

what are statutory fees

fees set by state statute

At the time of the roman republic how much did legal services cost

free of charge

what are the two methods of calculating the attorney's contingency fee

gross fee method and the net fee method

what is the most common fee found in law offices

hourly fee

according to model rule 1.5, what are the three occasions when an attorney may divide a fee with another attorney

if the division is in proportion to the services rendered by the lawyer or by written agreement with the client. 2. if the client agrees to the division 3. total fee is reasonable

what is an essential ingredient for any fee argument

in writing

why are lawyers prohibited from fee splitting with nonlaywers

it may allow the lawyers indented judgement to be controlled by a non lawyer who is interested in his or her own profit rather than the legal needs of the client.

who has full responsibility for a client's fees

lawyer

what is the name of the case that ruled that paralegal fees are recoverable

missour vs jenkins

what is most often the source of dispute between a client and a lawyer

misunderstanding about fees

why are attorneys not allowed to pay for the expenses of litigation

modern day reasoning for not allowing attorneys to pay for the expenses of litigation is tot discourage lawyers from putting their own recovery before that of the client

what are minimum and maximum flat-fees

outcome of the matter. if the outcome of the matter is extremely satisfying for the client, the maximum fee is charged. minimum=client not happy

what is a nonrefundable chargeable retainer fee

paid in advance of representation and it is not refundable to the client in most circumstances. it is applied to a client's bill

what is a nonrefundable nonchargeable retainer fee

paid to the firm at the beginning of the case and is not applied to the client's bill. It is not refundable if the firm is discharged

what is a true retainer fee

paid to the law firm to ensure the firm's availability to the client

what is a charing lien

placed on a clients judgement that the lawyer obtained for a client

what are the six factors used to determine hourly rates

planned on budgeted expenses, excluding partner or shareholder compensation and benefits. desired profit percentage. firm collection rate-billings divided by cash

name the 10 different types of fees

retainer fees, hourly fees, flat fees, task based fees, contingency fees, statutory fees, premiums, value based, combination

what are the four considerations in taking a case on a contingency fee basis

risk. inflation. significant expense. cash flow.

why is a true retainer fee used

secure a firm's loyalty to a client

what is a flat (fixed) fee

set fee for a service rendered

hourly rates vary according to what three things

speciality, experience of attorney, geographical location

what is a modified contingency fee

the lawyer is paid a percentage of the difference between the amount at issue and the amount of the final judgement

why must paralegals comply with attorney guidelines concerning fees

they are agents of the attorney

why have a number of states put limits on contingency fees

they felt that doing so would discourage lawsuit

what are the eight consideration in determining a reasonable fee (TOCATPET)

time and labor required. other employment opportunity customary fees in the community amount involved and results obtained time limitations professional relationship with the client experience, reputation, and ability of lawyer type of fee: fixed or contingent

what are premium payments

tips.

name the four types of retainer fees

true retainer, nonrefundable chargeable retainer, nonrefundable nonchargeable retainer, refundable