The bad news is there’s no ‘easy’ way to set fees. The good news is that if done right, your fees can be a real selling point. [Note: This post was originally published in September 2012 – over 10 years ago – and yet the same conversations around billing and fees continue to occur in …
Are your law firm invoices helping or hurting you? I’ve seen far too many legal bills that are confusing, disjointed, filled with abbreviations that are difficult to decipher or don’t contain enough information to understand what was done and what the client is actually paying for. Watch the video below (or scroll down if you …
Are you waiting for your clients to call or email you before you let them know what’s happening on their matter? Find out why this may result in clients not paying your bills on time in the video below, or scroll down to continue reading. If your clients are calling you for status updates, you’re …
Here’s another video in my series on how to talk to your clients about billing and fees. I’ve talked in previous videos about what to cover with clients during the initial consultation, but even if you’ve done a great job of covering the basics of your billing practices and how you set your fees during …
Do you like surprises? Everyone likes surprises – unless the surprise is a bill you weren’t expecting. The one thing clients hate more than anything is a surprise bill. If a client is surprised by a bill, it usually means you didn’t do a good job of communicating with your client about your fees, either …
Do your clients balk at your fees? Do you have to chase them down to pay your bills, only to have them argue about the charges? This is the first in a series of posts and videos about how to talk to your clients about fees. We’re starting with the initial consultation. Watch the video …
What do you do if a client questions your bill? Nobody likes it when a client questions their bill. It doesn’t feel good. It’s easy to get defensive and to feel as if the client is questioning your integrity. Don’t fall into that trap. Watch the video below, or scroll down to read on and …
Are you happy with your firm’s cash flow? Your billing and collections practices can have a major impact on your law firm’s cash flow. Here are five ways to improve them to make cash flow more consistent. (Watch the video, or read more below): Have Frank Conversations with Clients About Billing – No one likes to …
Do You Have Problem Clients? Maybe Your Free Consultation is to blame. Are you wasting your time offering free consultations? I’m Allison Shields Johs, President of Legal Ease Consulting, where I help lawyers create more productive, more profitable, and more enjoyable law practices. I can’t tell you how many lawyers I’ve worked with who complain …
I had an article appear in the October issue of the New York State Bar Journal entitled, “What Should Your Engagement Agreement Include?” Read it here or click on the link below the images to see the full article. What Should Your Engagement Agreement Include – NYS Bar Journal October 18 Reprinted with permission from: …
This post contains affiliate links. If you click through, I may receive a small commission (at no cost to you). One of the biggest hassles of being a solo or small firm lawyer is dealing with billing issues including tracking time (if billing by the hour), generating invoices, tracking payments, following up on late payments, generating …
If you have been in practice for any length of time, sooner or later you’re going to get stuck with a difficult client, or at least a difficult client conversation. Uncomfortable client conversations can arise for multiple reasons. Sometimes those reasons have more to do with the client than with the lawyer, but every attorney-client …
This is the second in a series of articles about fees, prompted by two posts authored by Carolyn Elefant on two different blogs. The post I want to discuss today was a post from the law.com legal blog network entitled, How Can Lawyers See The Value in Value Billing If No One Will Tell Us …
Carolyn Elefant’s My Shingle blog recently discussed competing on price. Carolyn contends that solos, and particularly new solos, need to compete on price in order to get their foot in the door. She says, “…what incentive does a client have to hire a new attorney unless he or she is charging a lower rate?” There …
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