The Going Rate

I came across a 2010 legal fees survey conducted by Canadian Lawyer's Magazine (see here). I found it quite fascinating to go through, and wondered if it might be a useful resource when meeting with clients - especially when they are asking for estimates or quotes for various legal services.

I was a little surprised to see the fee ranges for some legal services. For example, a civil action trial (2 days) runs from $18,185 to $62,843 (avg $26,444). I noticed that fees for small firms (1-4 lawyers) were often lower. For some services fees were higher in the Western region than in Ontario, but the opposite for other services. I wonder why?

I was also quite impressed to see that our firm's rates were on par with average fees across the board. That's pretty amazing since we kind of came up with them on our own. However, we do try to base fees on the actual work involved in the service.

Tips for lawyers re-qualifying in Canada

Read about re-qualifying as a lawyer in Canada here (Lawyer's Weekly).

Law School in Canada vs. USA

The McGill Tribune

By Elisa Muyl

"For students who have had their hearts set on going to law school since childhood, David Segal's recent New York Times article, "Is Law School a Losing Game?" offered a familiar but oft-ignored warning: law school is difficult and expensive; proceed with caution.

In his article, chronicling the overwhelming debt and the unforgiving job market faced by an estimated 44,000 hopeful American JDs each year, Segal argues that the decision to pursue a legal degree should not be taken lightly, since, contrary to the statistics being published by the schools themselves, it's an investment that doesn't necessarily offer great returns..." read more here.

LU Law School coming soon

A proposed law program at Lakehead University is being recommended by an approval committee for law programs in Canada. Read more here.