Matthew Davis | Seattle Contract Lawyer

My wife Melanie Leary went to law School together and have practiced together since 1994.  Our practices have focused on real estate, primarily residential.  Over the years, we have handled hundreds of cases, tried over 100 trials, and handled more than 20 appeals.  If it concerns real estate, chances are we have done it many times.

Over the years, the practice of law has changed a lot.  More than anything else, lawyers have become really expensive, not just because the hourly rates have gone up, but also because law firms now charge for paralegals and other expenses that used to be overhead. We have pretty much resched the point where most people can’t afford legal help when they need it. And cases now drag on for over a year, which only adds to the cost.

In 2013, Melanie and I decided to form our own firm and see if we could restore some sense to our lives. We both were representing so many people that we had to work weekends, and it just wasn’t fun anymore.  The bills we sent to clients were typical for Seattle, but part of us questioned whether they were really reasonable. We also both had too many clients who were using us to harass or take advantage of people.  But lawyers generally take clients who will pay.

So we cut out hourly rates from $350 to $250. $350 or more is the going rate for comparable attorneys, but it just seemed too high to us. We also made some decisions about what time we would bill for and how we would do it.  There are no rules for what constitutes billable time, and a lot of attorneys seem to just bill for any time spent thinking about a case.  We think that only productive time should be billed, which means time that was reasaonable or necessary or that accomplished something. One thing that particularly concerned us was client calls.  It is common practice for lawyers to bill clients for their time if the client calls.  As we see it, this leaves clients in the position of deciding if it is worth the cost to call and ask a simple question or check on the status.  We never bill for telephone calls with clients, whether we call the client or the client calls us.  There may be times when we have a lengthy call to discuss strategy, prepare for a deposition, or consider a settlement offer.  Those calls are productive time, but we will not bill for them.  We think it too important for clients to feel free to call whenever they want to need to.

We also bill differently than most firms.  A typical bill from a law firm will itemize the actions of the attorney, such as “telephone call with witness,” draft letter to opposing counsel,” or “research jurisdiction issue.” The problem is that the client has no way to know if those times were reasonable or what was accomplished.  We bill for specific tasks or projects that were completed, even if it took several days.  For example, “Meet with client, review clients documents, learn background of case,” or “draft, revise and file Complaint,” or “Draft and revise motion for summaryu judgment motion, declarations, and file with court.” In some cases, it may take only an hour or two to learn the background, while in others, it may take days. With our billing system, clients can see how much we took, and raise an issue if it appears excessive.

Lawyers are expensive, and we are no exception.  However, we find that our fees are always significantly less than the fees of other parties in our cases.  We also have found that by limiting the amount of work we take, it is easier to spend longer times on a case at a time, which increases efficiency.

In addition to disputes, we also help people with other real estate matters, such as for sale by owner, gifts, easements, and the like. We have prepared many view easements, and similar agreements.  We do most of that work on a flat fee basis. Many matters that seem like they should be simple require some thought. For example, a gift of real estate may be subject to excise tax, and a seller who finances the sale of his or her home must register with the Department of Financial Institutions.  We help people navigate these requirements in the flat fee.