My wife and I used to work for the worldwide legal behemoth DLA Piper, back in the 1980s when it was merely Piper & Marbury, the second largest law firm in Maryland. We were both legal assistants, and proud to be so; Piper in those days, despite being a blue-chip corporate firm, valued its integrity as much as its revenues, and treated both its employees and clients with respect.
Sadly, that no longer seems to be the case. But the principal problem here is not the law firm in question, but, rather, the institution of the billable hour, by which lawyer productivity and achievement is measured principally by the amount of time one or more attorneys spend on a matter. One doesn't have to be a lawyer to see how such a system can be manipulated for the benefit of the lawyer and not the client. I have heard of lawyers billing clients for time spent (sometimes in the shower) thinking about their client's case.
This is why my wife and I, whenever possible, try to negotiate a flat fee and a payment schedule for our clients. It ensures honest work and reliable payments. Of course, in the litigation context, flat fees are not always possible, because litigation is inherently unpredictable. Let's hope that the DLA Piper scandal ensures more communications between lawyers and clients about costs--and more self-policing by lawyers of their billing practices.
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