Bill Collection and the Business of Law | LPM CLE Webcast | Video Archive

"Converting Hours Worked into Dollars Received: How to Get the Bills Out and Receivables Collected"

1.5 MCLE Credits

Sponsored by the Law Practice Management Committee of the New York State Bar Association

This program focuses on converting hours worked into dollars received.  Panelists share tips on getting bills out and receivables collected.  Panelists cover methods of billing for services, determination of hourly rates, intake processing, types of retainers, methods of recording and reporting time, accounts receivable, methods of handling delinquent accounts and much more.  

Featuring Joel S. Lever, Esq., Partner, Kurzman Eisenberg Corbin & Lever, LLP, White Plains, NY, Howard Protter, Esq., Managing Partner, Jacobowitz & Gubits, LLP, Walden, NY and Joel A. Rose, Joel A. Rose & Associates, Cherry Hill, NJ.

Agenda Topics

I.          Methods of Billing for Services

• Value Billing
• Contingent Billing
• Hourly Billing
• Combination of Value, Contingent and Hourly

II.         Determination of Hourly Rates

• Formula based upon cost and expectations
• Formula based upon multiples
• Formula based upon overall firm budgeting
• Variation from standard based upon discount arrangements or premium billing
• Written fee agreement

III.        Intake Processing:  How and By Whom Handled?

  A Review of:

• Conflicts
• Legal competence
• Adequate staff
• Ethical problems
• Marketing concerns
• Fee arrangements - including credit assessments and/or retainers

IV.       Types of Retainers

• Advances for costs
• Initial charges
• Security billing
• Full billing

V.        Establishment of Billing Amount, Methods of Recording and Reporting Time

• Recording time in client file
• Manual central recording/time slips
• Daily time logs
• Computer time recording
• Central inputting
• Scan time sheets
• Disks
• Networks

VI.       Time Units

• One-tenth of an hour
• One-sixth of an hour
• One-fourth of an hour

VII.      Recording of Services Performed

• Full description
• Generic category descriptions

VIII.     Methods for Increasing Billable Time by Lawyers

• Establishment of goals
• Incentive compensation
• Special work programs

IX.       Miscellaneous Billing

• Billing for word processing, secretarial time, messenger services, etc.
• Recoupment or amortization for the time devoted to creation of standardized documents, etc.

X.        Billing Process

• Automatic
• Lawyer discretion
• Augmenting or retainers or security deposits
• At closing or completion of project

XI.       Responsibility for Accounts Receivable

• Individual lawyer
• Department chair
• Finance committee
• Firm controller or administrator
• Accounts receivable manager

XII.      The Charging of Interest on Delinquent Accounts

XIII.     Methods of Handling Delinquent Accounts

• Termination of services
• Negotiation of settlements
• Suing for fees

XIV.     Impact on Responsible Attorney for Delinquencies

• Affecting allocation
• Charging interest to partner’s account

XV.      Special Billing Problems

• Bankruptcy cases
• Class action suits
• Personal injury cases
• Criminal matters
• Estates and trusts

XVI.     Requirements for Exceptional Record Keeping

• Establishment of percentage goals for billing time and realized rates

Program Faculty

Joel A. Rose, Program Chair and Moderator
Joel A. Rose & Associates, Cherry Hill, NJ

Joel S. Lever, Esq.
Partner, Kurzman Eisenberg Corbin & Lever, LLP, White Plains, NY 

Howard Protter, Esq.
Managing Partner, Jacobowitz & Gubits, LLP, Walden, NY

This program was recorded on Thursday, February 16, 2012.

For questions about this program, please contact Kathy Suchocki, Director of Law Practice Management at the New York State Bar Association at (518) 487-5590 or ksuchocki@nysba.org.

To learn more about law practice management resources available to NYSBA members, visit www.nysba.org/LPM.