3 ms·

You think that is bad. Try working with an attorney, they charge you to read your email and not respond at all.

mindslight 3y ago
That's nicer than my experience! My attorney charged me to respond to my emails without reading them. And when the relationship inevitably ran aground at the 11th hour, he feigned ignorance of everything I had been telling him. I do my own low-pressure legal work now.
D13Fd 3y ago
I honestly think we'd be better off if doctors and nurses charged for their time like the good lawyers and paralegals due. No fixed fees. No per-visit charges. Just bill for the time spent (including pre- and post-visit paperwork) and the direct expenses actually incurred. Everything else is built into the hourly rate. It will never happen, but it would be much better.
otterley 3y ago
Did you ask for a refund of those billings? If they refuse, you should report them to the State Bar if they're doing that. It's unethical to charge for services not rendered.
- annoyingnoob 3y ago
  https://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/can-a-attorney-charge-for-an-email-that-he-she-rea-4758940.html https://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/can-a-attorney-charge-for... https://lawstuffexplained.com/can-a-lawyer-charge-you-for-emails/ https://lawstuffexplained.com/can-a-lawyer-charge-you-for-em...
  - otterley 3y ago
    Speaking as an attorney myself, I'm not the least bit surprised that a bunch of my peers are claiming that they can charge to merely view emails. Many attorneys -- especially bad ones -- are particularly defensive of the practice. The problem is that without demonstrating somehow that they read it, they cannot prove they actually read that correspondence when they claim to have. This puts them in a difficult position because the client can plausibly claim that they did work they didn't actually do. Perhaps they don't need to send an explicit acknowledgment (even though it's the right thing to do), but if they don't even act like they received and read it, yet charge you for it, that's a real problem. FWIW I've had little trouble getting my attorneys to credit me for activities I didn't ask them to do. Somewhat different situation, but most good attorneys aren't scumbags.
    - gnicholas 3y ago
      > I'm not the least bit surprised that a bunch of my peers are claiming that they can charge to merely view emails. Many attorneys -- especially bad ones -- are particularly defensive of the practice. Having received many email tomes from clients, I wouldn't think twice to charge for reading their email. I would typically respond, but not necessarily if they weren't asking a question, or if we were going to be meeting soon to discuss. I don't know any attorneys (note: all the attorneys I know are corporate attorneys, so may be less bill-sensitive) who would not bill for time spent reading emails. Lawyers spend tons of time reading emails! > FWIW I've had little trouble getting my attorneys to credit me for activities I didn't ask them to do. This makes sense, but is somewhat orthogonal to the email question. If a client sends his lawyer a long email, he is implicitly asking the lawyer to spend the time reading the email.

That's nicer than my experience! My attorney charged me to respond to my emails without reading them. And when the relationship inevitably ran aground at the 11th hour, he feigned ignorance of everything I had been telling him. I do my own low-pressure legal work now.

D13Fd 3y ago

I honestly think we'd be better off if doctors and nurses charged for their time like the good lawyers and paralegals due. No fixed fees. No per-visit charges. Just bill for the time spent (including pre- and post-visit paperwork) and the direct expenses actually incurred. Everything else is built into the hourly rate. It will never happen, but it would be much better.

otterley 3y ago

Did you ask for a refund of those billings? If they refuse, you should report them to the State Bar if they're doing that. It's unethical to charge for services not rendered.

annoyingnoob 3y ago
https://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/can-a-attorney-charge-for-an-email-that-he-she-rea-4758940.html https://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/can-a-attorney-charge-for... https://lawstuffexplained.com/can-a-lawyer-charge-you-for-emails/ https://lawstuffexplained.com/can-a-lawyer-charge-you-for-em...
- otterley 3y ago
  Speaking as an attorney myself, I'm not the least bit surprised that a bunch of my peers are claiming that they can charge to merely view emails. Many attorneys -- especially bad ones -- are particularly defensive of the practice. The problem is that without demonstrating somehow that they read it, they cannot prove they actually read that correspondence when they claim to have. This puts them in a difficult position because the client can plausibly claim that they did work they didn't actually do. Perhaps they don't need to send an explicit acknowledgment (even though it's the right thing to do), but if they don't even act like they received and read it, yet charge you for it, that's a real problem. FWIW I've had little trouble getting my attorneys to credit me for activities I didn't ask them to do. Somewhat different situation, but most good attorneys aren't scumbags.
  - gnicholas 3y ago
    > I'm not the least bit surprised that a bunch of my peers are claiming that they can charge to merely view emails. Many attorneys -- especially bad ones -- are particularly defensive of the practice. Having received many email tomes from clients, I wouldn't think twice to charge for reading their email. I would typically respond, but not necessarily if they weren't asking a question, or if we were going to be meeting soon to discuss. I don't know any attorneys (note: all the attorneys I know are corporate attorneys, so may be less bill-sensitive) who would not bill for time spent reading emails. Lawyers spend tons of time reading emails! > FWIW I've had little trouble getting my attorneys to credit me for activities I didn't ask them to do. This makes sense, but is somewhat orthogonal to the email question. If a client sends his lawyer a long email, he is implicitly asking the lawyer to spend the time reading the email.