Most legal firms operate the way they do because they can. And when the entire profession acts the same way, physicians who require legal services have limited options. Law firms continue to use business practices that frustrate doctors because "that is how it is done." For example:
The Billable Hour: The “billable hour” forces clients to scrutinize attorney billing records and question whether the bills have been padded. Jeff Bleich, President of the State Bar of California, writes that the billable hour trap has increased the cost of litigation and “largely eliminated accountability for outcomes.” Moreover it “has cast an ethical cloud over the work [lawyers] do, demoralized lawyers and degraded efforts to train lawyers to solve problems.” Because many large firms have quotas for billable hours, it is easy for these attorneys’ motivations to become more centered on generating billable hours than on efficient problem solving.
Attorney Contact: Many physicians feel they have limited access to their attorney because phone calls are not promptly returned. Clients often feel forgotten and are not updated regularly about the status of their case. When contact is made, clients know they are on the clock.
Add-Ons: Physicians cannot understand why a one-minute phone call or email shows up on their bill as a fifteen-minute charge. Even more disconcerting are those $5.00 charges for sending a simple fax, when nearly every other business considers this a cost of doing business.
By addressing these problems, the Tower Law System establishes trust and helps restore respect to the legal profession.