Fee Arrangements

Money spent on legal counsel and advocacy is some of the most important money you can spend, and serious legal issues can arise without warning.  At Drew & McCallum, we strive to make high quality legal counsel and advocacy affordable by utilizing a number of strategies.  By aggressively utilizing technology in the firm, we are able to keep our overhead lower than many other firms, and we pass those savings on to our clients through lower billing rates than other lawyers of comparable skill and experience.

We also employ a variety of billing methods.  In addition to traditional hourly billing with up-front retainers, Drew & McCallum also offers alternative billing practices such as fixed-fee, mixed fee, and contingency billing.  

Hourly Billing

Hourly billing is the most traditional and often-utilized method of structuring legal fees.  Under this arrangement, the clients pay their attorneys by the hour for the actual time spent working on that legal matter.  Generally in hourly billing arrangements, the firm requires an advance partial payment (or "retainer") at the beginning of the representation.  When a retainer is required for a particular  matter, the amount of the retainer is set on a case by case basis and is determined, in part, by the number and complexity of the legal issues involved.

Fixed Fee Billing

Fixed fee billing may be appropriate for business clients seeking on-going general counsel representation.  By projecting the client's quarterly or annual legal needs, the cost can then be spread over several months or years so that the client avoids significant intermittent bills. 

Fixed fee billing may also be used in some litigation and transactional work when, by working closely with the client on their goals and the specific legal tasks requested, we can determine up-front the amount of legal work likely necessary to accomplish the client's objectives.

Contingency Billing

Contingency billing is a method of billing where the firm is paid a pre-set percentage of the funds received by the client.  This billing method may be appropriate in a case where all or the majority of the client's legal recovery is financial and where the likelihood of payment from the defendant is also probable.

Mixed Fee Billing

Mixed fee billing is a combination of one or more of these billing methods, perhaps also incorporating other methods of legal billing.

The billing methods listed on this page are the most common, but only a few of the possible methods for structuring legal fees.  When evaluating a new matter for a client, we look to the complexity of the facts and legal issues as well as to our client’s goals in making fee proposals. 

Trust in your attorney and legal advocate must include trust that you invested your hard-earned money wisely.  We always remember that it’s our responsibility to zealously pursue our client’s goals while guarding our client’s financial investment in the legal process.