FAQ: Business Immigration Legal Fees, Frequently Asked Questions

## FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions: Business Immigration Legal Fees

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Established in 1979

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## LEGAL FEE MYSTERIES SOLVED

This FAQ answers questions about our billing procedures.

Our primary goal is to have satisfied clients. Client satisfaction depends on accurate expectations concerning billing amounts and procedures. We hope this plain English FAQ contributes to this accuracy.

Legal fees are a substantial investment. The stakes are high. This report explains the return on the investment. The information should allow you to evaluate any services and how our services can meet your needs. For our existing clients, this information can help you answer questions you may have about your bills.

This information describes our firm, The Law Office of Joseph C. Grasmick, Business Immigration. While some of this information may also describe the practices of other law firms, our billing practices are adapted to the special needs of our clients: Canadian companies sending employees to the U.S., and U.S. companies hiring Canadians. Therefore, you should ask your other lawyers for a similar explanation of their fee structure.

### Questions

1. What is a trust account?
2. Why do you bill for a trust account? Why not just bill for time you've already spent?
3. Why must we keep our account constantly current? Why not only pay the required trust once?
4. When will I get my money back?
5. Why do I have to pay in advance?
6. Why bill hourly? Why not just bill a fixed amount?
7. How do you set your hourly rate?
8. Why not bill only if successful?
9. How much will it cost altogether? What is the bottom line?
10. Can you guarantee you will not go over the estimate?
11. Would it not be cheaper if we did it ourselves? What do you do for us that we can't do ourselves?
12. Is there any way I can keep the fees down?
13. Why do you put every minute and every telephone call on our bill?
14. Is there any way your law office can keep fees down?
15. Why do you bill us for expenses? Can you just absorb them into your hourly fee?
16. What do you offer to justify substantial legal fees? (Also known as: Why do you charge so much?)

### Answers

1. WHAT IS A TRUST ACCOUNT?

A trust account is essentially an individual banking account within the firm's general account. Funds in each client's account are not withdrawn until fees and expenses are incurred. We promptly return all funds remaining in the trust account when work is completed on the matter.

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2. WHY DO YOU BILL FOR A TRUST ACCOUNT? WHY NOT JUST BILL FOR TIME YOU'VE ALREADY SPENT?

We require an open trust account upon retainment. It is not simply a matter of credit risk. As a small specialized firm, we must require each client to maintain an individual trust account. This is for several reasons:

- We incur many day-to-day expenses for your matter (e.g. courier packages, postage etc.). If we do not have a trust account, we will be using funds supplied from another client to cover the costs incurred by your file.
- We cannot spread out expenditures over many clients. We are a small, specialized firm working on important business and professional matters. We work intensively---over short periods of time---on a very few select and time sensitive matters. This means that we are dependent on a few matters to cover our operating expenses.
- The system saves you money. We use the advance trust account system to avoid financing on our receivables. If we did receive financing, debt service/discount costs would have to be passed on to clients.

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3. WHY MUST WE KEEP OUR ACCOUNT CONSTANTLY CURRENT? WHY NOT ONLY PAY THE REQUIRED TRUST AMOUNT ONCE?

We require the trust account to be current each month so that we may work quickly.

We require funds for postage and other expenses. Another significant expense is the filing fees for applications and petitions. When these expenses are incurred, we draw up a check from your individual trust account. If your trust account balance is $ 0.00 we do not have the funds required for filing. In that case we would have to wait until the account becomes current, and then draw the appropriate funds for processing.

Our system prevents such delays. This is very important since immigration laws and business plans impose strict deadlines.

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4. WHEN WILL I GET MY MONEY BACK?

Upon completion of your immigration matters we return any funds remaining in your trust account.

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5. WHY DO I HAVE TO PAY IN ADVANCE?

In the practice of law it is common to bill in advance. There are at least six good reasons for our doing so:

- Immigration processing involves many government fees and incidental costs which appear on short notice.
- Your trust account often provides a cushion in case one payment is late, preventing unnecessary delays in your case.
- The payment represents a commitment. In many organizations authorizing a payable invokes a formal decision making process commiting all parties to a course of action.
- Clear communication within the organization results---a necessary preprequisite to effective legal representation.
- If you have more than one immigration matter in your company, this creates high resource demands on our office.
- The trust amount is only a fraction of the fees---some practices bill the entire estimated amount in advance.

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6. WHY BILL HOURLY? WHY NOT JUST BILL A FIXED AMOUNT?

According to the New York State Bar Association, lawyers usually bill hourly.

This is the fairest method to both the attorney and the client. The client pays for exactly the time spent on the matter---no more and no less. There is no chance that one client will be subsidizing another client. In case a matter ends prematurely, there is no question as to how much is owed.

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7. HOW DO YOU SET YOUR HOURLY RATE?

The rate depends on the efficiency of the attorney or paralegal---the more experience, the less time spent on a matter, and the higher the hourly rate.

Note that the average U.S., lawyer works 50-60 hours per week. Nevertheless, only 50-70% of our attorney time is billed to clients.

The remaining time is spent keeping up with the many new and changing immigration laws and regulations. We attend several lengthy continuing education courses per year. We are active in bar association immigration meetings and projects. Such activity is essential to keep current our knowledge of Immigration Service practice. Finally, we are bound by our code of professional ethics to perform volunteer legal services.

The cost of operating a specialty legal practice is unusually high. Immigration legal materials are very expensive, and we must have a complete library. The library consists of not only published materials, but hundreds of memos, opinion letters and telephone messages from our sources. The library must be updated daily. To save legal research time, most of our materials are now on expensive CD-ROM services.

Without this information, we could not maximize your chances of success. Immigration practice changes swiftly. Information about these changes is often secret, informal, or hard to find out. We often use crucial new information in a petition that we have received on that same day.

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8. WHY NOT BILL ONLY IF SUCCESSFUL?

This question is often asked this way: "Do you guarantee results?"

It is not appropriate to use contingency billing or to guarantee results in an immigration matter.

As an alternative to such a guarantee, we suggest that you select an attorney who will most likely represent you successfully. It is little consolation to not have to pay legal fees if your application is denied. Too much is at stake.

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9. HOW MUCH WILL IT COST ALTOGETHER? WHAT IS THE BOTTOM LINE?

Request an estimate of legal fees before you retain us.

Most immigration matters we handle involve fees of several thousand dollars.

Assistance with B-1 permits and the less complex TN's will not exceed $5,000. An example of a less complex TN is a professional engineer's application. Another example is a TN systems analyst with a two year diploma and clearly qualifying employment.

Matters such as L-1 functional managers and TN Management Consultants should not exceed $10,000. This includes most TN applications where the employee has no bachelor's level degree. It also includes Green Cards under the intra-company transferee category.

A few of the most complex matters---such as National Interest Waiver/Labor Certification Green Cards---will exceed $10,000.

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10. CAN YOU GUARANTEE YOU WILL NOT GO OVER THE ESTIMATE?

Yes. With our Satisfied Client Rule we stick to our estimates. Exceptions are clearly listed in writing on our Retainer Agreement.

We know the importance of your budget. One of the questions we ask on our concluding questionnaire given to all clients is "Are your fees what your lawyer said they would be?"

If the answer is no, we immediately review the past bills and call the client to see where the confusion lies. If an error is on our part, we will credit the account.

It is in our interest to keep your fees as low as possible. Why?

We must be competitive. To succeed we must have satisfied clients.

This goal is impossible to meet when clients are not happy with their fee arrangement. We want our clients to use our services for future matters. Satisfied clients are our highest source of referrals for new client matters.

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11. WOULD IT NOT BE CHEAPER IF WE DID IT OURSELVES? WHAT DO YOU DO FOR US THAT WE CAN'T DO OURSELVES?

Perhaps---if you can guarantee a quick approval from the Immigration Service in the midst of complex law and frequent legal changes.

Smart HR managers discover that outsourcing immigration work is less expensive in the long run. HR managers must now handle an incredible variety of employment issues. By using business immigration lawyers, managers can focus their human resource efforts in areas in which they excell. Immigration needs are usually one-time or occasional events. It is difficult to acquire expertise in this complex area with this limited experience.

We interview each client to determine the best route. During the interview, we decide upon the immigration approach most beneficial to your needs. We then advise you whether you need our services or not.

Many times we have informed our clients that their immigration route is relatively simple. We advise them that it is in their best interest to file the particular application personally. We also advise the client of procedures to follow and give them a list of sources for referral.

If the immigration approach is more technical, we forward a Retainer Agreement and a fee estimate.

In the face of frequent changes in the law, you are guaranteed updated resources. We are informed prior to any changes in regulation, and we prepare your file accordingly. This is difficult, if you are preparing your own case.

We will often personally escort you through NAFTA border procedures during your L-1 or TN application. We will also stand by your side at INS office interviews. This is to maximize your chance of success and to minimize stress to you, your employees and families.

For more information see Do I Need a Lawyer? in the FAQ.

Immigration is too important to take chances. What's at stake:

- Business. The key to expansion plans, millions of dollars in revenues, and the very survival of some companies.
- Profession. Immigration can determine the choice of profession and degree of success in one's professional life.
- Family. Immigration can impact the future of immediate family and descendants for generations.

What's important to you are results. No matter how inexpensive, without positive results, the outcome will be costly.

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12. IS THERE ANY WAY I CAN KEEP THE FEES DOWN?

Yes.

We send a "requirements letter" for most immigration approaches. This requirements letter is a list of information and documents we will need before we can file your application.

If you follow the instructions carefully and quickly, your fees will be reduced. Much attorney time on the typical case is spent reminding clients to forward documents. Much time is also spent asking clients for documents they did not send the first time. Finally, much time is spent asking for revisions of documents that were not prepared correctly.

All of our requirements letters are in plain English. Most have been redrafted countless times, over the past fifteen years, to make them more understandable. (This Web page, for example, is at an 8th grade level.)

Another way to reduce fees is to move fast. For example, do not wait until your visa is about to expire to apply for permanent status. This will require renewals of your temporary permit and more legal work.

If you are going to retain our office, do it quickly. Use our expertise before there is a problem. Like many things in life, it is harder to reverse an existing problem than to prevent it in the first place.

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13. WHY DO YOU PUT EVERY MINUTE AND EVERY TELEPHONE CALL ON OUR BILL?

We were inspired to purchase a new software billing system after reading an article by Peter A. Manson, Senior V.P. of The First Canadian Bank.

In Legal Economics, the magazine of the ABA Section of Economics of Law Practice, he wrote:

> "The reluctance of lawyers to provide meaningful billing information is irritating. I recognize the sensitivity many firms have to providing cost and time details; unquestionably it can lead to misleading comparisons and inferences. Yet I need the information to account to my management and accounting staff for the work done. In my view, time is one, but only one, relevant component. The information should be provided."

Such detail helps you in these ways:

- It lets you know exactly what we are doing for you. The New York State Bar Association states that most misunderstandings between lawyers and clients about fees "result from client unawareness of the extent of the lawyer's work on the case." A lawyer's professional services differ from those of a doctor or dentist. Lawyers do much of the work when the client is not present. Therefore, many clients are often unaware that the four-page document, or advice given in a few minutes, is actually the product of many hours of hard work. Our detailed bills let you know exactly what you receive for your fee.
- It helps you track errors. We are not perfect. Although errors in our favor to date have involved very small sums, we appreciate your help to correct them. It is impossible to correct bills with just summary totals.
- It gives you a monthly status report of your case. By reviewing your Billing Statement, you can see exactly what we have done on your case. You'll find that the number of phone calls (and thus, legal fees) are minimized.

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14. IS THERE ANY WAY YOUR LAW OFFICE CAN KEEP FEES DOWN?

We take measures to constantly increase efficiency in our office.

We are prepared to use the Internet from start to finish. Since "one internet year equals 23 normal years" this results in an incredible time advantage for our Internet clients. We are moving to full internet representation, from initial "do it yourself" fee proposals on the Web, to the final e-mail approval notification message. Time savings are even more remarkable where both the employer and the applicant use e-mail.

We have prepared reports on the various immigration approaches. We update our visa availability report monthly. We maintain quick reference files to save repeated time spent in research. (It is more professionally rewarding to spend time on legal issues rather than inefficient and repetitive tasks.)

Quick communication also saves time. We now use electronic mail, fax, mailgrams and efficiency letters for over half of our communications with clients and the government. We use overnight services for much of the remainder. Our goal is to return telephone calls within 24 hours.

Backlogs create more work. We rely heavily on word processing and computerized record keeping to prevent work from getting behind.

By limiting our practice to immigration, we can give you the advantage of repeated experience on similar cases. This tight focus over the years has produced numerous form letters and check lists which are available only in our office. We do not have to draft requirements letters or common application documents from scratch.

If it is more efficient for the primary attorney to do the work, he or she does it. For example, we draft and send many communications directly from the attorney desk top computer to clients. Using special software, lawyers directly prepare immigration forms right on their computers. This speeds the message and bypasses the typist. It eliminates the need for rewriting drafts.

We also maximize your chance of quick success. If we do not strive for perfection, denials or INS requests for more information will result in more fees and expenses.

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15. WHY DO YOU BILL US FOR EXPENSES? CAN YOU JUST ABSORB THEM INTO YOUR HOURLY FEE?

The smaller and more predictable expenses are absorbed into the hourly fee. We bill larger or variable expenses to each client.

Almost all lawyers bill for out of pocket expenses. This is because it is a fair system. Expenses vary greatly from client to client. One client would not want to pay the expenses of another.

While estimates of time to be spent on a case are predictable, expenses are not. Some of our clients require expert evaluations. Some do not. Some of our clients require international courier services. Others do not. We telephone some of our clients who live in Buffalo. We must call others in Macao.

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16. WHAT DO YOU OFFER TO JUSTIFY SUBSTANTIAL LEGAL FEES? (Also known as: WHY DO YOUR CHARGE SO MUCH?)

### QUALITY AND VALUE: A SUMMARY OUTLINE

- High probability of success
  - 15+ years practice exclusively in immigration---a very specialized area
  - Our clients are almost all Canadian---the law is different for Canadians
  - We concentrate on business and professional visas---your visa---not relative petitions, asylum, or deportation hearings
  - Petitions are customized to each person, profession, and business to make your situation fit within the law. This takes high-quality, senior attorney time.
  - Our firm handles fewer clients, and can spend more time on each case
    - Our work cannot be mass produced.
    - We can work quickly, to get your status quicker
    - We can do more of the paperwork for you to help you avoid mistakes. We minimize paperwork and red tape.
- High degree of efficiency where the stakes are high.
  - Cutting corners leads to higher fees in the long run. Our goal is to do it right the first time, even if we have to work harder. Denials are more likely the second time around. Appeals of denials are expensive and can take years.
  - A quick, careless work permit application---even if successful---can jeopardize permanent residency later.
  - Delays resulting from careless applications can make things more complicated and expensive.
    - Unnecessary renewals of temporary permits while you are waiting for permanent residency.
    - Expensive changes to business and personal plans if you do not get your work permit on time.

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© 1996 Law Office of Joseph C. Grasmick, Business Immigration

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