Billing Practices

It is always best to have an attorney-client relationship clearly defined.  The firm uses a standard Retainer Agreement (also known as an Engagement Agreement) to spell out the scope of work the firm is being hired to do, as well as the financial terms of the business relationship between the client and the firm.  The firm can commence work on a client's behalf once the Retainer Agreement has been signed and the client has provided an initial retainer payment.

It is difficult to predict how Family Law cases will progress, and how much time the firm will need to spend working on any given case.  For this reason, it is not practical to operate on a "fixed fee" basis in Family Law cases.  Similarly, it is not a good idea for a Family Law attorney to try to estimate how much a case will cost the client.

Therefore, this firm, like almost all Family Law firms, operates on a retainer (or "advance fee") basis.  This means we collect a significant payment up front, based on the firm's estimate of what the case will cost in the immediately foreseeable future (not necessarily the entire case).  That money is placed into a trust account, and remains the property of the client until earned by the firm.

Each month, the firm calculates how many hours (down to the 10th of an hour) the attorney has spent on a client's case, multiplies that by the attorney's hourly rate, and then deducts that amount from the client's trust account.

The retainer system means the client does not need to stay on top of paying bills each month, and it helps avoid client's falling behind on their legal expenses.  If funds are left in the client's trust account at the end of the case, those funds go back to the client; if the entire retainer is used up before the end of the case, the firm will require a supplemental retainer payment.

Mr. Horowitz bills in 10th of an hour increments (i.e., 6 minutes), on a daily basis.  Meaning, if he spends 5 minutes on a case in a day, the client will be billed for one 1/10 of an hour for that day's work.  If Mr. Horowitz spends 9 minutes on a case in one day, the client will be charged for 2/10 of an hour for that day's work. 

Mr. Horowitz scrupulously tracks his time, down to the minute, for all work he does.  He recognizes that Family Law clients are people, not corporations, so he makes every effort to keep costs to a minimum, without compromising the quality of his legal services.

The firm provides each client with a monthly invoice detailing exactly what work has been done on their case, and Mr. Horowitz is always happy to discuss the work he has done and answer any questions a client may have about their bill.