Accessible and Approachable

Most problems can be avoided if the issues or constraints are known early.  We encourage the customer to call us with questions ahead of the issue and enjoy the conversation of:
  
        “My business needs to accomplish this objective, what do we have to do to make it happen, or what are the legal considerations we need to know about and what are your recommendations?”

The conversations no one enjoys are those that occur after the event and proceed as follows: 
  
        “I was trying to accomplish this objective, and now I have a letter accusing me of violating another company’s rights.  How can you get me out of this?”

The cost of the advice in the first scenario pale's in comparison to the cost of the legal assistance in the second scenario.  Legal assistance is like medicine – it is far cheaper to avoid a legal problem or prevent an event such as a heart attack, than it is to cure and try to reverse the damage.
 
Why wasn’t the attorney contacted earlier?  Past experience has shown that inconvenience is the reason people don’t call their attorney.  It is inconvenient because the attorney is either inaccessible or perceived unapproachable because the “cost” to contact the attorney is unknown. 
 
The Firm has established an operating and fee structure to overcome the problem. 
 
Accessibility to the Attorney at the Firm is provided through implementation of the latest technology and the personal commitment to use it.  For example, there is a commitment to return phone calls within 2 to 4 hours.  The only time when this does not happen is when the attorney is out of the country with time lags, on vacation, or during meetings with other customers when the cell phone is off.  Another example of this is that the Firm will provide email accounts and/or encryption for clients who need extra protected communication with the Firm.
 
Approachability is increased by uniquely structuring the legal fees so that the customer has ongoing access to the attorney for a fixed fee.  Every business knows it needs ongoing legal advice.  Our goal is to make the costs as predictable as possible; Which in turn lowers the barriers and encouraging the customer to involve the attorney earlier rather than later.
 
Realistic goals with agreed upon cost structures to accomplish the goals
 
Cost uncertainty is probably one of the largest unstated reasons people do not call the attorney.   Hourly rates add up very quickly and sometimes the littlest question can generate a huge seemingly out of proportion bill – And sometimes only for the response – “Yes, your instincts were right, you can or can’t take that course of action.” 

Cost uncertainty for project work is addressed by pricing the legal services upon the philosophy of fixed fee integration.   Where possible, we offer a fixed fee payable upon reaching agreed upon milestones.  Many customers think of this as a project plan with stage gate go/no-go decisions.  Patents and trademarks are priced in this manner. A retainer is usually required for new customers, before embarking on a large project, or advancing a significant amount of third party fees.

Attorneys at the Firm are often asked, “What if your costs go beyond the estimate?”  The simple answer is the Firm does its best to keep to the estimate.  The advantage of the fixed fee arrangement is that the customer knows the price before initiating the work.  One of the reasons the fixed price integration works, is because there is sufficient trust between the customer and the attorney to acknowledge those extremely rare instances when the work was significantly under or over-estimated and the parties agree to adjust accordingly.

No matter how hard the attorneys try or experienced they become, there are just some tasks whose costs cannot be estimated.  In those events, the rates, the determination of the rate, the work done at each rate and how the hours will be calculated is detailed for the customer before work is started.  In the end the customer knows exactly how much is being spent and where the money is going.

Startup and cash managed companies find this approach of immense value since it is much easier to manage cash flow.