February 6, 2007 |
Posted By Patrick J. Lamb |
2 Comments |
You Have The Right To Remain Silent
Everybody knows the Miranda warnings. You have the right to remain silent. You have the right to an attorney. And so forth. I was involved in a conversation recently that made me wonder whether we in the legal profession ought not have a similar set of rights for our clients that all lawyers could recite as easily as any fan of TV cop shows can recite the Miranda warnings.
Here was the exchange. I asked this question: Should a client have the right to approve a course of conduct that will cause fees to exceed an agreed upon budget? I was shocked by some of the answers I heard. More than half the lawyers who answered me said that the client should simply pay the bill if the work was properly done. More than half!!!! Client "Miranda" warning number 1: You have the right to approve a course of conduct that will cost you money! And corollary number 1: If I forget to ask your permission to do something that costs you money, you have the right to not pay me. That's right, if a lawyer exceeds a budget for a task or a time period without telling the client it is about to happen and discussing the best way to handle the situation, the lawyer ought not be paid.
The operative concept here is budget discipline. Our clients live by it. Those that don't live by it all to frequently die by it--that is, are fired because of it. In this day and age, with all the technology available to track expenditures and time, there is no excuse for exceeding a budget. Indifference doesn't count.
Written By:basquette
On February 6, 2007 4:52 PM
Here was the exchange. I asked this question: Should a client have the right to approve a course of conduct that will cause fees to exceed an agreed upon budget? I was shocked by some of the answers I heard. More than half the lawyers who answered me said that the client should simply pay the bill if the work was properly done. More than half!!!! Client "Miranda" warning number 1: You have the right to approve a course of conduct that will cost you money! And corollary number 1: If I forget to ask your permission to do something that costs you money, you have the right to not pay me. That's right, if a lawyer exceeds a budget for a task or a time period without telling the client it is about to happen and discussing the best way to handle the situation, the lawyer ought not be paid.
The operative concept here is budget discipline. Our clients live by it. Those that don't live by it all to frequently die by it--that is, are fired because of it. In this day and age, with all the technology available to track expenditures and time, there is no excuse for exceeding a budget. Indifference doesn't count.
Welcome back! I missed your blog posts. I totally agree with these thoughts. I find it amusing that so many lawyers have no clue how to budget a case. When I was in-house, I asked our extremely competent outside counsel (very experienced litigator) for a budget for one particular case. That was when litigation began, in 2004. When I resigned last October, I was still waiting for that budget.
Years ago there was a local lawyer who dollar-averaged the cost of divorces. He then charged everyone one flat rate of $10,000 because some would cost more, others less but this way he avoided the whole issue. Clients liked knowing the litigation was capped. He did well. Ahead of his time? Maybe.
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