How do you bill?
The firm generally bills at an hourly rate (in increments of tenths of an hour) plus costs. Partners are billed at $250.00 per hour for transactional and consultative work; while Associates are billed at $200.00 per hour. Paralegal services are billed at $120.00. Litigation services are billed between $275.00 and $350.00 per hour. Some legal services are billed on a flat fee basis. Fees are subject to change and generally increase yearly.
Can I speak with you informally prior to retaining you for services?
Yes. The firm will provide an introductory telephone meeting to discuss your issues generally. However, pursuant to California law, legal advice may not be provided to non-clients; thus legal advice is not provided during initial telephone or email consultations.
How would I retain the firm for legal representation or consultation?
Once you’ve had an opportunity to have your questions answered and feel comfortable with the firm, pursuant to California law, you would be required to retain the firm by signing a written engagement agreement. This agreement would set forth the terms of the engagement including a fee schedule and scope of representation. In most cases, you would be required to advance a reasonable retainer fee which would be applied toward services. In the case of flat fee services, you would be required to submit all or a portion of the cost in advance of services.
What should I expect from legal counsel?
Your attorney may draft documents, review documents, represent you in formal proceedings such as in front of judge or at governmental agency proceedings, or at less formal proceedings such as during contract negotiations. Your attorney may respond to correspondence in your behalf or speak as your representative to a party to a negotiation. Your attorney may also act as your consultant or act as a sounding board or advisor. In some cases, your attorney may simply make you aware of issues that are implicated so that you may weigh the facts and circumstances and come to your own conclusions as to how to handle an issue.
Should I utilize legal forms that are available electronically or in hard copy form?
Some of these legal forms are well drafted by experts in the field. However, no legal form can anticipate the specific needs and desires of you and the other parties. It is extremely important that the specific details of your circumstances be set forth in any document. Otherwise, disputes may arise simply because the document is ambiguous or silent on an important issue; –or, you may be disadvantaged because the specific terms that you may have wanted included are absent, –or, you may later find that terms were included that were not in your best interest. Thus, it is best if you discuss the specific terms you would want included and those you would want omitted from any document with your legal counsel- so that a document can be reviewed or drafted that suits your needs. Moreover, your attorney may raise issues that you had not thought about such that those issues may be addressed in the document. Doing so will insure that circumstances that may arise are covered and/or unwanted results may be avoided. In some cases, legal forms that are available may be misleading, ambiguous, incomplete, outdated or contain incorrect legal information. In most cases, despite inadequacies of various documents, business interactions move along smoothly. However, in the case of a dispute, a poorly written document or one that does not accurately reflect your wishes may result in a break down of operations and/or may lead to expensive litigation.
Do I have to report my payment of legal fees to you to the IRS?
Yes. Generally gross payments of $600 or more in attorneys fees during a tax year must be reported to the IRS on form 1099-MISC. Our tax identification number is available upon request to clients for this purpose.
Are your fees tax deductible?
Often, fees paid for legal representation are tax deductible as a business expense. See the IRS website or your tax professional for more information.
As a business employing personnel, should we seek your services when there is a dispute?
California employers often violate California’s numerous and detailed requirements without being aware of doing so until an employee makes a claim or an agency assesses a penalty. Although the violation may be small, the penalties and interest that accrue may wind up being sizeable. Moreover, if the specific violation relates to more than one employee, it may be subject to a class action suit– which is the lawsuit trend of the day. California maintains stringent laws governing the employment relationship– arguably the most stringent of any of the states. California employers are held to the highest degree of accountability. Employers who unknowingly violate the law or are not in compliance may find themselves liable for enormous damages and penalties. Therefore, it is essential for employers to seek guidance and implement correct practices as early as possible, preferably prior to an employee claim. Whether you, as an employer, are seeking to implement correct policies or to defend against an employee claims– or anything in between, this firm can assist you.