Clients slam billable hour

According to a survey, 95% of clients would like to see a change to the billable hour, with a majority - 71% - of lawyers willing to agree, an anonymous survey has revealed. Legal services commissioner of New South Wales, Steve Mark, said "The tyranny of the billable hour is quite extraordinary … the problem is that the legal profession has adopted the billable hour from the accountants. The accountants used it as a costing measure. We have used it as a charging measure. It is a very good costing measure. And that may be a very good aspect of your charging, but it shouldn't be automatic in my view."

Changes, such as fixed fee arrangements, and what one might call 'flexible fixed fees', are being addressed by the Legal Profession Act. Good practices alleviate budgeting problems and with it one has more certainty, more cash flow, and a better business model.

Article on Lawyers Weekly