Canadian Lawyer

HOURLY RATES What do your clients need? The means to move on. Guaranteed . ™ Baxter Structures customizes personal injury settlements into tax-free annuities that can help your clients be secure for life. Need more information? Contact us at 1 800 387 1686 or baxterstructures.com 34 ntitled-2 1 June 2013 www.CANADIAN (AVERAGE) 1993 2003 yeAr of CALL 2008 2012 NATIONAL 1992 AND EARLIER also the conclusion of research, carried out as part of the CBA's "legal futures initiative," which was unpublished at press time. Hourly rates appear to have dropped overall since last year, although this could be due to sample differences. Response rates to this year's survey were lower than normal, with 179 firms taking part. In 2013, hourly rates nationally are $193 for one-year calls; $256 for five-year calls; $310 for 10-year calls; $364 for 20-year calls; and $375 for those called more than 20 years ago. The gap between one-year calls and five-year calls has widened since last year. In 2012, one-year calls charged 81 per cent of the hourly rate for five-year calls. In 2013, it dropped to 75 per cent. Headon says firms are realizing fees need to reflect the actual value of work done, and that may involve reducing the rates of more junior lawyers. But this is "only the first step" in a series of more sweeping changes, he says. "Clients aren't just asking for a cheaper cost but will ask for new practices, for example, involving non-lawyer professionals, or automated work. They're recognizing that not everything has to be done by a lawyer." This was echoed by one respondent, who said: "Clients want to know about lawyer time versus clerk time spent on files, and want to pay the lower rate of clerks, assuming clerks did most of the work." More than half (55 per cent) of respondents offered free initial consultations, though the second biggest proportion — 14 per cent — charged between $201 and $300. Only three firms charged more than $500 for an initial consultation. ONTARIO UP TO 25 LAWYERS $193 $199 $177 $256 $264 $236 $310 $311 $282 $364 $384 $326 $379 $389 $326 Opinions differed widely on the benefits of free consultations. A sole practitioner in Ontario said: "I have found that offering free consultation fees brings in a lot of 'tire kickers' — people shopping for the best deal. By charging for a consultation, you get people who are seriously looking for legal advice and who more often than not retain you." Another respondent from a small firm said fees were necessary to "weed out the clients who expect 'freebie' services" and to "garner respect." Others complained that people often failed to show up for free consultations or that slashing the fee created a false expectation that other services would be free or very low cost. However, a respondent from a mid-sized firm in Alberta said: "I think [consultations] should usually be free as part of our mandate to serve the public," while a lawyer from a small firm in Saskatoon thought the first half hour should be free "to let the clients gain trust in your abilities." Just over three quarters of firms responding to the survey had under five lawyers. Firms with between five and 25 lawyers represented 13 per cent of respondents, and those with more than 25 lawyers represented 11 per cent of the total. More than two thirds of respondents had offices in Ontario and more than 33 per cent served communities of more than 1 million people. Due to the response rate this year, we have only broken down fee ranges in two ways beyond national numbers: in Ontario and by firms with up to 25 lawyers. Looking at firms with Ontario offices, some of the most commonly provided services appear to have seen price drops in the past year. For example, the average fee charged by the 56 firms L a w ye r m a g . c o m 12-03-12 3:20 PM

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