The Australian Financial Review

Extrait de l'article "Clock Ticking for Traditional Hourly Billing"
par James Eyers and Rachel Nickless

Clock Ticking for Traditional Hourly Billing

Richard Stock of Catalyst Consulting says more formality is being introduced into legal procurement processes by companies around the globe. "There is an acceleration of the adoption and legitimisation of these techniques", he says.

Stock is encouraging clients to engage with law firms at the start of each significant matter to determine budgets, a process known as collaborative budgeting.

He also says more companies are exploring ways to achieve more predictable pricing, such as through price caps and blended rates (weighted average rates which are proportional to the amount of time a particular fee-earner is expected to work on a matter, based on its budget).

These techniques don't necessarily do away with hourly billing altogether, Stock says. "They are part of an evolution rather than a revolution."