How can engaging with a freelance attorney benefit hiring attorneys and their clients? 

Engaging with a freelance attorney can add targeted value to a legal team, empowering practitioners to do more for their clients at a faster pace and a lower cost.  As an experienced employment law attorney, I am committed to providing excellent legal work product to busy attorneys with limited hours in the day.  Because I operate remotely and accept only specific types of work, I am able to provide high quality legal work product while also keeping my overhead and rates low.  In short, hiring me will allow you to accelerate your deliverables to the client and achieve a cost-effective outcome for everyone.  My services can also free you up to spend more time on higher priority work for your clients.

What kind of contact does a freelance attorney have with a firm’s clients?  

When I partner with law firms to provide additional staffing support, all of my work product flows directly to the hiring attorney rather than the client.  The hiring attorney, in turn, is solely responsible for reviewing and revising the work product prior to sending it to their client or filing it in a matter.  I do not enter an appearance on litigation matters, sign any pleadings, or interface with clients, unless such contact is requested by the hiring attorney as necessary to the project.  My engagement letter is directed to the law firm or hiring attorney for signature.  Likewise, all invoices are paid directly by the firm or hiring attorney.  

If my firm works with a freelance attorney, is she considered an employee of the firm?

While determining whether a contractor is properly classified is always a fact-dependent inquiry, a true freelance attorney is not considered an employee of a hiring firm.  For example, unlike a firm employee, I accept (or reject) discrete legal projects offered to me, decide when and where I work within the applicable deadlines, and generally work using my own tools and software.  I am also only given access to the documents and communications necessary to do my assigned work and can work for a number of different law firms at any given time, as long as I conduct a conflicts check prior to accepting a new project.  For more information on the distinction between “firm lawyers” and “non-firm lawyers,” see Texas Center for Legal Ethics Opinion 577.

Do freelance attorneys have their own malpractice insurance?  

While the work I do for law firms is often covered under the firm’s malpractice insurance policies, I also maintain a separate malpractice insurance policy to ensure coverage for the work I perform.

How do freelance attorneys get paid? 

When I engage with law firms to provide additional legal staffing support on a matter, I send all invoices directly to the law firm or hiring attorney for payment; I do not invoice the underlying client directly unless I am engaged by them independently, as is the case when I provide staffing support to in-house legal departments.  In both scenarios, I bill for my work on an hourly basis, but I am available to work on flat-fee arrangements in certain circumstances as well.  I invoice monthly for work I have completed to date, and I do not require retainers.  Invoices are to be paid within thirty days, irrespective of a firm’s own collection practices. 

How do I pass the cost of a freelance attorney’s work through to my client?

In Texas, attorneys are permitted to directly pass costs incurred by “non-firm lawyers” to their client either (1) as an expense or (2) as hourly work for which exactly the amount of the “non-firm lawyer’s” work is included in the law firm’s fee.  See Texas Center for Legal Ethics Opinion 577 for more information.

Attorneys who wish to discount or surcharge the fees charged by a “non-firm lawyer” must comply with additional fee-splitting requirements of Rule 1.04(f) of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct.  See FAQ “Can I include a surcharge when I invoice my client for a freelance attorney’s work?” below for more information.  

Can I include a surcharge when I invoice my client for a freelance attorney’s work?  

It  is common for firms that work with freelance attorneys to include a surcharge to cover the administrative and financial costs involved in managing the freelance attorney’s participation in a matter.  Local ethical rules determine whether and to what extent surcharges are permissible.  In Texas, attorneys who wish to surcharge (or discount) the cost of legal work performed by “non-firm lawyers” who work on a matter must comply with the fee-splitting requirements of Rule 1.04(f) of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct.  Rule 1.04(f) requires hiring attorneys to obtain informed, written consent from their clients to split a fee with an attorney outside the firm before engaging that attorney.  As part of this informed consent, hiring attorneys must disclose the identity of the outside lawyer, the basis of the fee splitting arrangement with the outside lawyer, and the share of the fee each attorney will receive.  As long as the client consents in writing to the arrangement and the ultimate fee charged per hour is not unconscionable under Rule 1.04(a) of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct, including a surcharge on a freelance attorney’s hourly rate for legal work performed is permissible.  See Rule 1.04(f) of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct and Texas Center for Legal Ethics Opinion 577 for more information.

If your firm wishes to include a surcharge to cover the administrative work and financial liability you assume by working with an attorney outside the firm, Fosson Legal Services, PLLC can provide you with a draft engagement letter addendum addressing Rule 1.04(f)’s disclosure requirements. 

Where are you located and licensed to practice law? 

I currently work remotely from Wiesbaden, Germany, and I am licensed to practice law in both Texas and Alabama.  Because all of my work flows directly to the hiring attorney for review and revision, however, I am also often permitted to provide work product to out-of-state firms without running afoul of local rules regarding the unauthorized practice of law.  Ultimately, the answer to whether I can provide out-of-state services depends on the jurisdiction in question and the nature of my involvement in a legal matter. 

Do you provide freelance legal services directly to corporate clients? 

Yes.  I engage directly with both firms and corporate clients.  Because I am working remotely from Wiesbaden Germany, however, I am only currently able to accept legal work that does not require in-person appearances.