not to hate on attorneys, but-

[Deleted]

do they know they're in a beauty contest?

have any offered a discounted rate?

have you asked about alternative fee arrangements?

we're so totally worth it. trust and believe. ha.

[Deleted]

also, don't necessarily avoid big firms. sometimes you can get some good bang for your buck with cheaper associates/paralegals doing the work and more minimal partner supervision, plus higher level of expertise/specialty so you're not asking someone who does wills most of the time to learn contract litigation. i'm sure you're calling a variety of firms, but lots of times people want to avoid places with fancy lobbies when in fact it might not be cheaper to do so.


and my billable rate makes me blush.

[Deleted]

it sounds like you're covering the landscape.

i know more clients are asking for and more firms are willing to provide alternative fee options(like "i'll pay you $x if it's X% under, you refund me half the difference and if it's X% over i'll pay you half the difference" stuff). plus of course the standard 10% cut off the top esquire mentioned is pretty par for the course if you're not just a one-off client.

[Deleted]

$450/hour is very low for a big firm. Is it governed by Florida law? Then use Florida lawyers, don't use a big firm, use a middsized local firm with a commercial practice. Is it a franchisee dispute? Then use a plaintiffs' lawyer that will do contingency.

[kellbell191]

Aug 8, 2012 14:17:10 GMT -5 elle said:

$450/hour is very low for a big firm. Is it governed by Florida law? Then use Florida lawyers, don't use a big firm, use a middsized local firm with a commercial practice. Is it a franchisee dispute? Then use a plaintiffs' lawyer that will do contingency.

I don't think she's talking Big Law, I think she's talking larger local firms not solos. That's the impression I'm getting.

$450 seems reasonable to me too and I work in a smaller city. Straight out of law school I billed $250 an hour working for a very small firm.

[kellbell191]

Lawyers are pricey man, this is why I keep planning to write my own will then procrastinating. I am one and I can't afford us : (

[Deleted]

Ha! Come to MI, $450 an hour is unheard of unless you are dealing with BigLaw.

[Marle]

Ugh! That sucks. I thankfully haven't had a bad enough issue to require one.

I had to do a lot of work with my immigration process but there was no way I could have afforded an atty. Thankfully overstaying a visa is not such a huge deal if you end up married to an American.

I hope you get some reasonable solution.