Attorney & Counselor at Law
ROBERT M PHILLIPS
Our office will invoice you monthly based on the time spent performing services for you at the current hourly rate. Time records are kept accurate to one-tenth of an hour. All time spent on a client's matter, including meeting time, travel time, telephone calls, letters, emails, research, and preparation for and notes subsequent to meetings and telephone calls is billable time. You will be invoiced for the substantive time spent in preparing for and participating in the initial client meeting.
At times we may employ clerks, paralegals or staff to perform research and other work under the supervision of Mr. Phillips. Their services are billed at hourly rates lower than those of an attorney. We periodically review all hourly rates and may adjust the hourly rates during an engagement. You will be notified of such changes.
In addition to time, you will be charged (without markup) for any direct out-of-pocket costs incurred and advanced by our office on your behalf, such as filing fees, overnight courier/express mail charges, travel expenses and court fees. You should note, however, that it has long been our office's practice not to charge clients for reasonable numbers of photocopies, faxes (inbound or outbound), domestic long-distance telephone tolls or regular delivery postage.
At times we may employ clerks, paralegals or staff to perform research and other work under the supervision of Mr. Phillips. Their services are billed at hourly rates lower than those of an attorney. We periodically review all hourly rates and may adjust the hourly rates during an engagement. You will be notified of such changes.
In addition to time, you will be charged (without markup) for any direct out-of-pocket costs incurred and advanced by our office on your behalf, such as filing fees, overnight courier/express mail charges, travel expenses and court fees. You should note, however, that it has long been our office's practice not to charge clients for reasonable numbers of photocopies, faxes (inbound or outbound), domestic long-distance telephone tolls or regular delivery postage.
You will be required to make a “retainer” deposit. The amount of the retainer will vary depending on the complexity and scope of the legal services that will be provided. The retainer is not intended to cover the cost of all, or even most, of the services which will be provided to you. Instead, the retainer is a deposit, held in a non-interest bearing trust account. We may apply the retainer to your monthly bills as they become due and if we do, we will expect you to replenish the retainer.
Our office operates on a calendar month billing cycle and sends out invoices shortly after the first of each month. We would appreciate your payment of invoices promptly upon receipt. Unless other arrangements are made, if you have an outstanding balance that is 27 days or more past due, you will be assessed a monthly late charge equal to 1.5% of the amount past due, and we may suspend working on your matter until your account is brought current.
BILLING PRACTICES AND POLICIES
RETAINERS / BILLING CYCLE