5 ms·

A lot of these strike me as not only sneaky, but unethical and possibly even illegal. For example, as a software consultant I would feel I were committing fraud

by lukev 13y ago

A lot of these strike me as not only sneaky, but unethical and possibly even illegal. For example, as a software consultant I would feel I were committing fraud were I to bill two clients for the same hour of time. Is there a different consensus around the definition of "billable time" in the legal world that makes this not as bad as it sounds?

fiatmoney 13y ago
Double billing for travel & work done during travel is definitely ethically verboten, and frequently specifically used by lawyers as an example of unethical behavior.
cylinder 13y ago
It actually is against the professional rules that govern attorney conduct. We (lawyers) are trained on this in school in a mandatory course and have to pass a standardized ethics exam to be licensed (separate from the bar exam).
gamblor956 13y ago
Some state bars have decided that lawyers can no longer bill travel time to one client if the time is also spent billing work to another client. However, many states still accept this practice, because on its face, it is perfectly reasonable and ethical. For example: if a client is being billed for time spent traveling on behalf of the client, the lawyer could do nothing while traveling and the time would still be billable to that client (as travel time). Even if the lawyer then does work for another client at the same time, the lawyer is still spending time traveling for the first client. (Note that travel time is frequently billed at lower rates or is otherwise discounted compared to normal billable work.) Curiously, however, it is not permissible to bill the same client for travel time and again for time spent working on that same client's case while traveling.
- ProblemFactory 13y ago
  Billing for idle travel time, but not double-billing travel+work makes sense. The premise is that travel is wasted time by the lawyer - that he could have used for another client or family if he did not have to travel. If they can bill another client during travel, then it wasn't wasted time for them after all.

by lukev 13y ago

fiatmoney 13y ago

Double billing for travel & work done during travel is definitely ethically verboten, and frequently specifically used by lawyers as an example of unethical behavior.

cylinder 13y ago

It actually is against the professional rules that govern attorney conduct. We (lawyers) are trained on this in school in a mandatory course and have to pass a standardized ethics exam to be licensed (separate from the bar exam).

gamblor956 13y ago

Some state bars have decided that lawyers can no longer bill travel time to one client if the time is also spent billing work to another client. However, many states still accept this practice, because on its face, it is perfectly reasonable and ethical. For example: if a client is being billed for time spent traveling on behalf of the client, the lawyer could do nothing while traveling and the time would still be billable to that client (as travel time). Even if the lawyer then does work for another client at the same time, the lawyer is still spending time traveling for the first client. (Note that travel time is frequently billed at lower rates or is otherwise discounted compared to normal billable work.) Curiously, however, it is not permissible to bill the same client for travel time and again for time spent working on that same client's case while traveling.

ProblemFactory 13y ago
Billing for idle travel time, but not double-billing travel+work makes sense. The premise is that travel is wasted time by the lawyer - that he could have used for another client or family if he did not have to travel. If they can bill another client during travel, then it wasn't wasted time for them after all.