We want you to understand the principles that we apply to setting the fees that we will be charging you. If you understand the rationale behind the charges, we hope you will better appreciate the legal services we render for you and our efforts to keep our charges reasonable. As hard as we try to avoid mistakes, errors sometimes creep into the billing procedures. If you know the billing principles, you can help us catch a mistake. We request clients to pay retainers to cover anticipated out-of-pocket costs plus 50 percent of the estimated fees. These retainers are held in a special bank account called the Client Trust Account, and are used to pay costs and are then applied to the clients' bills for legal services. (Interest on money in the Client Trust Account is transmitted to the New Hampshire Bar Foundation for charitable activities, and none of the interest is reportable by clients for tax purposes.) The links to the right offer information from the brochure that we hand out to new clients, describing our billing practices. Fee schedules for certain standardized Estate Planning and Business Planning services are also provided. For nonstandardized services, the current hourly rates are set forth. Home | About Us | Business Planning | Tax Planning Estate Planning | About Biling | Contact Us   Billing Information and Fees Click links below for more information GENERAL BILLING INFORMATION Billing by time expended Billing by Document Billing by Value of Service Reduced rates for routine or nonintensive time Reduced Rates for Nonprofit Organizations Unexcused Delinquent Payments Out of pocket expenses/client cost disbursements Schedule of Hourly Rates BUSINESS PLANNING SERVICES/FEES TAX MATTERS PROBATE DOCUMENT CHARGES Estate Planing Documents Revocable Trust Documents Medical Decision Documents Irrevocable Trusts Special Clauses Transfer Documents Application for federal tax ID number Crummey notices per donee ($1,000 max) Billing by time expended: For gathering information, researching the applicable laws, imparting the choices to the client, discussing and deciding on the choices, and drafting custom documents, the fee is based upon the amount of time expended by the lawyer or the paralegal. Hourly rates are actually measured in increments of 6 minutes (one tenth of an hour). The fee based on time expended will therefore depend upon who performs the service. Rates are established to reflect the education and experience of the lawyer or paralegal doing the work. Both the lawyer and the paralegal will record their time expended in telephone conversations bearing on the matters covered by the hourly rate. For the specific rates in force for each professional, see the Schedule of Hourly Rates. |BACK TO TOP| Billing by Document: Time expended in tailoring a basic document to the client's needs will not generate a fee based on the hourly rates. Rather, the client will be charged a flat fee, which we call a Document Charge, which includes a charge to compensate the law firm for its research and development of the basic form document. This flat fee covers the drafting, revising, editing and proofreading of the document as tailored for the client. When a client requires an unusual number of revisions or additions, we will add to the client's bill a charge based on the professional's hourly rate and the time spent by the professional in satisfying the client's specialized requirements. |BACK TO TOP| Billing by value of service: When time recorded by the professionals does not translate into appropriate values, bills may be adjusted to compensate. Most often, bills are adjusted downward. Sometimes, however, the opposite may occur. In either case, the adjustment will reflect the firm's estimate of fair value for the services rendered. |BACK TO TOP| Reduced rates for routine or nonintensive time: Recognizing that time spent on one client, no matter how fruitless, is time that can never be recaptured in the service of another client, we nevertheless reduce the hourly rates for services which require the presence, but not the intense concentration, of the professional. Such services include travel time and waiting time where the time lapse in rendering such service is significant (at least 20 minutes). The reduction is usually 40 percent, so that the time is billed at 60 percent of the normal hourly rate. |BACK TO TOP| Reduced Rates for Nonprofit Organizations: We offer a 25 percent discount to nonprofits and to individuals desiring to establish a new nonprofit organization. This discount covers the charges for services performed, however calculated. The nonprofit is expected to reimburse us in full for costs incurred. |BACK TO TOP| Unexcused Delinquent Payments: If a client fails to pay a bill, and has not contacted this office to explain why payment is delayed, all work on that client's behalf will be suspended until the client has paid the outstanding bill in full and has deposited a retainer to cover the balance of the anticipated costs and fees. |BACK TO TOP| Out of pocket expenses/client cost disbursements: Clients are always expected to pay the costs associated with their legal matters. We try to keep a retainer slightly in excess of anticipated costs, such as filing fees, so that the costs may be paid from client funds. Not all costs can be anticipated; some costs, such as long distance telephone charges, are accounted for only after the office has disbursed payment. Whether payments are made from client funds held in the client trust account or from the law firm's funds to be reimbursed by the client upon billing, the transactions will be reflected on the client's bill. Even if the legal services are subject to a delayed-payment arrangement, the client is expected to reimburse the law firm immediately for costs advanced on the client's behalf. This office does not normally charge for making copies of documents. However, if the document is unusually long or difficult to copy, or multiple copies are required, a copying charge will be added at the rate of 10 cents per page. In any event, if this office chooses for any reason to use an outside service to make the copies, the fee charged by that service will be treated like any other cost disbursement and added to the client's bill. Computer-aided legal research costs the firm a considerable sum for search time, plus on-line charges and printing surcharges. These costs, as they are incurred for a particular client, are passed on to the client. The time of the lawyer or paralegal employing the computer search will also be charged at the appropriate hourly rate. Although the cost of computer research sounds expensive, the computer saves the client money since the research takes less lawyer/paralegal time and will sometimes turn up more useful information than a search through books. |BACK TO TOP| Schedule of Hourly Rates: [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP| BUSINESS PLANNING SERVICES: Formation and organization, including bylaws or operating agreement: N.H. corporation/LLC Delaware corporation Mass. corporation Family Limited Partnership package Trade Name registration - partnership Trade Name registration - proprietorship Election of S corporate status Application for federal tax ID no. Business, Real Estate or Nominee Trust Annual Report of N.H. Corporation Annual Meeting Minutes for corporation Buy-Sell Agreement Partnership/Shareholder Agreement Independent Contractor Agreement [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP| TAX MATTERS: Income Tax Returns Estate Tax Return [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP| PROBATE: |BACK TO TOP| Estate Planning Documents: Simple will--single person Simple wills--married couple Durable power of attorney (financial) Simple will, financial and health care powers of attorney Simple wills, health care and financial powers of attorney for married couple [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP| Revocable Trust Documents: Single Trust: Revoc. Trust package, married couple Revoc. Trust package, single person Revoc. Trust pkg., non-U.S. citizen Revoc. Trust pkg., non-married couple [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP| Medical Decision Documents: Health Care Power of Atty. Living Will [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP| Irrevocable Trusts: Life Insurance Trust Trust for Minor Child Trust for Disabled Adult International Trust Charitable Trust Qual. Personal Res. Trust ("QPRT") [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP| Special Clauses: Generation-skipping clause Special Needs clause (disabled benef.) [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP| Transfer Documents: Deed to real estate in New Hampshire Deed to real estate in another state Power of Appointment Exercise [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP| Application for federal tax ID number [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP| Crummey notices per donee ($1,000 max) [read more on rates] |BACK TO TOP|

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