Screwing Up Billing (If You Bill Clients by the Hour)
New lawyers have found many ways to screw up billing over the years. Here are some quick tips to get you ahead of your peers and help you become a better biller.
1. Keep your time contemporaneously.
If you have to go back and remember what you did, you'll never do so correctly.2. Proofread your time entries before you submit them. Spelling the client's name wrong is not good for getting reimbursed.
3. NEVER FUDGE YOUR TIME. THIS SECTION IS IN ALL CAPS NOT ONLY BECAUSE IT'S THE WRONG THING TO DO BUT ALSO ILLEGAL AND CAN LEAD TO DISBARMENT OR IMPRISONMENT.
4. Take your descriptions seriously. Imagine you are both your senior colleague and the client when you proofread the bills. Would you pay this bill if you were the client? Does it look like you added value? Does the billing subscription properly and clearly explain what work was done? You should not expect senior lawyers to redraft your vague and worthless descriptions. Use active verbs and show value.
5. Don't bill everything. Give away hours as a junior associate and don't tell anyone. Make your work look better than it actually is. You won't have to do this your entire career, just when you are getting started.
6. Be efficient. Think of the expenditure of your own time as your own money. Always try to find more economical ways to undertake the same endeavor.