Wherever possible, we use flat billing charges for specific legal tasks, so that the client can know in advance what charges they will face. Our experience in providing legal advice in our chosen fields allows us to make such estimates based upon past history.
That being said, there are numerous circumstances where the appropriate value is best determined by the amount of time spent on a project. This is particularly true where the client has very specific requirements and therefore a significant amount of time is required to generate highly specialized documentation. It is also true where the client requires detailed and time-consuming explanations of the details of the work being undertaken. In some cases the reality is that client behaviour is highly relevant.
Generally, our fees can also take into account the following factors:
- complexity of the matter, difficulty and novelty of the questions involved, skills, specialized knowledge (including use of existing document templates) and responsibility of the lawyer;
- amount of money and value of property involved;
- number and importance of documents prepared or reviewed;
- circumstances under which services are rendered;
- customary charges of other lawyers of equal standing; and
- end results achieved.
All of these are relevant in determining the value to the client.
We will be happy to provide estimates for any legal services we offer. However, keep in mind that complex projects, such as corporate reorganizations, require a significant amount of review of corporate records and document planning in order to determine the steps required, and therefore arriving at such an estimate is, in and of itself, a time-consuming task. In such cases we usually provide very rough estimates, and try to err on the high side, so that we rarely end up charging more than our estimate.
Hourly Rates
Where relevant, our current standard hourly rates are $275 per hour for Corey Piché, and $225 per hour for Nicole Handford. In British Columbia, HST is exigible on legal services rendered in relation to activities in B.C., so an additional 12% is charged on that account.
Disbursements
Disbursements are costs that we pay out of pocket in order to provide legal services to our clients. We charge our clients for the various disbursements we incur for them. Examples include:
- Courier charges
- Filing fees
- Agents' fees
- International long distance charges
- Costs of travel and accommodation incurred on behalf of clients
- Printing, copying, scanning, and fax costs
Specific Fees
We do charge fixed fees for a limited number of our corporate law services. In particular (and subject to all applicable taxes), the following charges are our standard fees for the services below. Note that the figures provided below are before taxes and disbursements, unless specified otherwise. Note further that in all cases these fees assume that the client is responsive in terms of providing all necessary information and returning all materials within reasonable time frames.
- Incorporation of B.C. company: $1,200, including taxes and disbursements, provided that
- the client's chosen company name is available,
- the client does not require significant explanation of the incorporation process, and
- the company share structure conforms with a structure typically used by our firm.
- We have a number of standard structures, suitable for a variety of corporate purposes, ranging from simple one-share-class companies intended to be used as corporate subsidiaries through to 16-share-class structures intended for highly complex tax-driven transactions. Therefore it is rare that one of our existing structures cannot be used by a client. However, where something new is required, we charge our standard rates to create the necessary structure.
- Annual fee for acting as registered and records office of B.C. company, including annual maintenance: $200
- Documentation of declaration of cash dividend by B.C. company: $225
- Note that this is for a dividend that is not a capital dividend nor an "eligible" dividend under the Income Tax Act; such documentation is more specialized
- Documentation of declaration of cash bonus by B.C. company: $225
- Documentation of declaration of cash dividend and bonus by B.C. company: $325
Billing and Payment
For clients with ongoing commercial matters, we tend to invoice on a monthly basis, in order to break up costs over time. We find that this keeps clients aware of (and better able to control) their ongoing costs, rather than permitting surprise bills at the end of extended projects. However, some projects cannot be effectively billed until completion. We would be happy to discuss with you your preferred billing method.
Our accounts are due immediately when rendered and overdue 30 days thereafter. We render timely services to our clients, and in return expect timely payment: except in exceptional circumstances, we cease work on all files of a client who has one or more overdue accounts.
We do accept payment by major credit card.
