Below is an excerpt from a agreement that a law firm (SSD) has asked me to sign on behalf of its client RGF (bold is mine):
You will submit written invoices to SSD detailing the services rendered pursuant to this agreement during the immediately preceding month. All invoices will be sent directly to the attention of [Attorney 1] and [Attorney 2] at the above address. SSD will immediately forward all invoices to RGF. SSD will endeavor to secure payment of the invoices within 30 days of their submission to RGF, and SSD will pay you the amount due for services rendered and expenses incurred within 10 calendar days after SSD receives payment by RGF. Although your invoices will be paid by checks issued by SSD, you acknowledge that RGF is ultimately responsible for payment of any appropriate charges that you submit, and you will not look to SSD for payment of any amounts that are unpaid or disputed by you.
So I'll have a contract with someone, but someone else is responsible for payment and I'll have no means of enforcing same? I don't think so...
Well, that was quick. Attorney 2 just emailed me back saying that they'll drop the last sentence.
99% of all attorneys give the rest a bad reputation, Jim. Congratulations, apparently Attorney #2 is in the 1%.
I bet they will also get you to try to sign a waiver for the last check saying you have no case to file a lien. We get companies trying to pay us everything but the last 1% till the job is finished, and you have to tell them to pay you the 1%, they won't automatically cut a check when the project is finished. We always get the1% waved or we will not do the job. I always wonder how much they can save on that 1%.
Conversely, I've seen lawyer and accountant conditions of client engagement that say (literally, i.e. not abridged): "You agree to pay us any amount that we deem appropriate".
How about this:
Our minimum fee for this work will be $____.00. The typical range of fees for this type of work is $_____ - $_____. During the course of the work it is possible that we will encounter unexpected/unusual conditions. In this event we will notify you immediately and discuss the options. Should this occur our fee will be determined from a variety of factors, including the time and labor required, the novelty and difficulty of the problems involved, the skill and knowledge required to perform the service properly, research of private records, and the likelihood that other employment will be precluded. We reserve the right to adjust our charges to bring the final fee into line with our perception of value as determined by the forgoing factors. We will require a retainer in the amount of $______ to begin work.
Lovely. I'd add something to the effect that once the value of work to date exceeds the retainer, another retainer is required, and so on.
What do lawyers and sperm have in common?
1 in 300 million have the chance of becoming a viable human.
Why does New York have all the lawyers and New Jersey have all the toxic waste dumps?
New Jersey got first choice.
Q: How many 'lawyer jokes' are there?
A: Only two. All the rest of them are really true.
This engineer died and went to the pearly gates. St. Peter told him that he couldn't let him in, that he was scheduled to go to hell. So the engineer went to hell. Before long, the engineer was figuring out how to make things more tolerable. He installed a cooling system and did many other things to make it a much more pleasant environment. About that time God realized he had made a mistake.
He gets Satan on the phone and says, "I made a mistake. You need to send that engineer up here. He's not supposed to be down there."
Satan: "I don't think so. He's doing good work down here."
God: "Send him up here or I'll sue you."
Satan: "Just where do you think you're going to get a lawyer?"
"do you know a lawyer joke?"
"Yes, I just hung up on one 10 minutes ago!"
A farm connected lawyer joke................................................
How many lawyers does it take to properly grease a combine?
Just one if you run him through slowly.
Why are there so many lawyer jokes?
Because they make it so easy!
At a convention of biological scientists, one researcher remarks to another, "Did you know that in our lab we have switched from rats to lawyers for our experiments?" "Really?" the other replied, "Why did you switch?" "Well, for three reasons. First we found that lawyers are far more plentiful, second, the lab assistants don't get so attached to them, and thirdly there are some things even a rat won't do."
Scott Ellis, post: 437519, member: 7154 wrote: I bet they will also get you to try to sign a waiver for the last check saying you have no case to file a lien. We get companies trying to pay us everything but the last 1% till the job is finished, and you have to tell them to pay you the 1%, they won't automatically cut a check when the project is finished. We always get the1% waved or we will not do the job. I always wonder how much they can save on that 1%.
Some vendors building public facilities have a 10% holdback, this and a signed lien waiver for each check received. I ended up adding a 10%fee in my bids and would recover it that way, of course you lose jobs by being higher than everyone else, but I'm not a bank.
The process with DOT work was a 30-60 day wait which isn't much of a problem, but when you are on a building that isn't finished for a year after the surveying is finished and you have to wait it out,,,,,,,,
As long as they accept my bid with the 10% fee added I'm fine, otherwise I don't do it.
MightyMoe, post: 437677, member: 700 wrote: Some vendors building public facilities have a 10% holdback, this and a signed lien waiver for each check received. I ended up adding a 10%fee in my bids and would recover it that way, of course you lose jobs by being higher than everyone else, but I'm not a bank.
The process with DOT work was a 30-60 day wait which isn't much of a problem, but when you are on a building that isn't finished for a year after the surveying is finished and you have to wait it out,,,,,,,,
As long as they accept my bid with the 10% fee added I'm fine, otherwise I don't do it.
It might have been 10%, and yes these are jobs that take well over a year to finish, after the Survey work has been completed. At least when they call for the Asbuilt Survey it sets a bell off to ask for the 10%. However for the painters, concrete, framers, etc... how do they know when the job is finished, at some point they may just say its easier to forget about the 10% and move on.
Years ago when I paid a visit to my cousin in NE South Dakota, I got a real kick out of how he pronounced "lawyer" (the CORRECT way!)... he said he had to contact his "LIAR". At least that's the way I heard it.
SellmanA, post: 437690, member: 8564 wrote: Years ago when I paid a visit to my cousin in NE South Dakota, I got a real kick out of how he pronounced "lawyer" (the CORRECT way!)... he said he had to contact his "LIAR". At least that's the way I heard it.
Are you sure it isn't your cousin that is pronouncing it the correct way?
Tom Adams, post: 437693, member: 7285 wrote: Are you sure it isn't your cousin that is pronouncing it the correct way?
That's what I meant 🙂
Scott Ellis, post: 437679, member: 7154 wrote: It might have been 10%, and yes these are jobs that take well over a year to finish, after the Survey work has been completed. At least when they call for the Asbuilt Survey it sets a bell off to ask for the 10%. However for the painters, concrete, framers, etc... how do they know when the job is finished, at some point they may just say its easier to forget about the 10% and move on.
I've always wondered the same thing, and then there are companies that go out of business or some guy that retires. What happens then?
The first non DOT job we had was an elder care facility, took a year and a half to get the 10%. Sent a bill each month.
From then on it's added on to each bill, then recovered at the end on top. Basically an 11% add on. Still it's a PITA way of doing business.
