How to Hire Us

Helping Every Client Achieve Best Results

Lai & Turner eliminates the worry and stress often experienced by people when hiring an attorney. By virtue of practicing our company principles in everything we do – Truth, Justice, Respect, and Empathy – we eliminate worry and stress right at the beginning of our working relationship with every client.

Hiring an attorney is both an intellectual and emotional decision. Intellectually, people need assurance that the attorney they hire is competent, ethical, and committed to their client’s best interests. Emotionally, people need to feel a certain degree of trust and connection with the attorney they hire.

Next Steps

We hope our website has provided you with a wealth of information to help you hire Lai & Turner Law Firm for our legal services and representation. If so, the next step is very simple.

Click here and complete our new client intake form with as much information and detail as you can.

TIP: Our Intake Specialists will respond to inquiries prioritized by their completeness in information and details. Our goal is to be able to quickly refer your inquiry to a Lai & Turner attorney. Incomplete details will delay this referral.

What to Expect After We Receive Your Contact Form

• A Lai & Turner Intake Specialist will review your Contact Form for completeness.
• The Intake Specialist will contact you by phone to conduct a brief preliminary interview.
• Based on the preliminary interview, the Intake Specialist will either;
• Invite you to attend our office (or video call) for a FREE Case Evaluation
• Refer you to a Lai & Turner Investigator to obtain additional case information*
• Refer you directly to a Lai & Turner Law Firm attorney*
• Advise you that we are unable to assist you with your legal matter. In such cases, we will try to refer you to another private attorney or free legal aid service
• These steps may require a fee for service
• The FREE Case Evaluation, Investigation and Attorney Referral steps are required so our staff can accurately understand;
• Exactly what legal services you are seeking
• The legal grounds that support your case
• The steps our attorney and staff will need to take to resolve your case
• Your desired or expected result (case outcome)
• Once our staff has determined the above, they will be able to provide you with;
• a legal opinion about the strengths and weaknesses of your case
• a legal strategy to resolve your case
• a fee quote for legal services

How Much Do Legal Services Cost?

Lai & Turner Law Firm is a privately owned law firm, not a government agency that provides free legal services. If you are seeking FREE legal services, please click here. First-time callers always ask, “How much will your legal services cost?” Fair question. Here is the best answer: “It depends. Every case is unique, and we would need to learn all the details of your case before quoting you a fee for service. Our highly trained Intake Specialists provide free case evaluations, but those are brief discussions to determine if we might be able to help you. Our attorney will then discuss your case in detail with you to assess what your case involves, what outcome you desire, and many other details. Once the attorney has obtained the necessary information from you, the attorney will:

• provide you with a detailed legal opinion

• provide you with a detailed legal strategy

• provide you with a detailed fee quote

Available Fee Models

Lai & Turner Law Firm offers four different fee models depending on the nature of the legal services
provided. Your Intake Specialist or Attorney will discuss these fee models with you to determine which model best applies to your case.

Flat Fee

We charge a flat fee for legal services that are routine in nature, and the estimated amount of time to complete the service is relatively known and stable. For example, we charge a flat fee to prepare an Estate Plan or to prepare the legal structure for a new corporation. A flat fee is beneficial for both the client and Lai & Turner because both parties know the full cost of the services provided up front before the services begin.

Hourly Billable Rate

Often, the total estimated time to complete legal service, and the specific nature of the services to be provided, is unknown at the beginning of our relationship with a client. Under such circumstances, we charge an hourly billable rate that fluctuates depending on the services provided. For example, if we defend a client who has been charged with a criminal offense, we charge a fluctuating hourly rate as follows: Attorney “office rate” for in-office consultations, document preparation, trial, and witness preparation, hosting dispositions; attorney base hourly rate. Attorney “field rate” for all field consultations, depositions, or court appearances with or on behalf of a client; add 25% to attorney base hourly rate plus travel and per diem as pre-approved by client. Investigator and paralegal “office rate” for in-house investigations, consultations, case research, and report writing; attorney base hourly rate minus 40%. Investigator and paralegal “field rate” for field investigations, consultations, and case research; attorney base hourly rate minus 25% plus travel and per diem as pre-approved by client.

Contingency Fee

A contingency fee is a fee model whereby neither Lai & Turner nor the client knows in advance how much time it will take to resolve a legal action, nor what the outcome of the action may be. There is significant risk and reward in cases where an attorney and client agree to a contingency fee. “Contingency” means that the attorney fee is payable to the attorney only if they win the case and money damages are awarded to the client. The fee is payable to the attorney at the time the defendant pays the settlement and not before. For example, serious personal injuries (such as from a car accident) can result in yet-to-be-determined medical expenses, permanent impairment, and pain and suffering experienced by the victim. Moreover, such cases can take months and even years to litigate and settle, and there is never a guarantee as to the outcome. Accordingly, most attorneys charge between 33-50% of the settlement to compensate them for the risk of working for free until the case is resolved. Moreover, many attorneys advance all costs of litigation, including medical report fees, expert witness fees, and more. If they lose the case, or the settlement or award is small, the attorney will have worked for free or at a low equivalent hourly rate. In turn, a client who wins their case will not receive the full amount of the settlement or award, but only the settlement amount less the contingency fee due to their attorney. Lai & Turner will quote a contingency fee based on the initial consultation, the complexity of the case, and other factors, such as costs that may need to be advanced during the legal action.

Hybrid

(combined retainer and contingency fee) Lai & Turner offers a hybrid fee structure for those clients who desire to reduce the contingency fee in exchange for paying a retainer to commence an action. This is often a satisfactory compromise when a client has the financial means to pay a retainer while desiring to minimize the contingency fee that will be due upon settlement of the case.

Management of Fees & Expenses

RETAINER

A retainer is an amount that the client pays upfront to Lai & Turner. The retainer is initially deposited into the Lai & Turner trust account and transferred to the general account once the service has been completed, OR, as billable hours of legal work are completed. Once the retainer has been exhausted due to legal work being completed, the client will be required to pay an additional retainer for Lai & Turner to continue its work on behalf of the client. (Often, once a client has an established working relationship with us, we waive retainers and offer monthly billing for work performed.)

EXPENSES

Depending on the work performed, Lai & Turner may have to pay for certain expenses on behalf of the client. For example, an immigration application will incur specific fees payable to the United States Citizenship and Immigration S services (USCIS). When a client pays fees to other third parties upfront, Lai & Turner will deposit such funds into its trust account and disburse them appropriately when due. A final note about fees and expenses; Lai & Turner will provide a monthly accounting of all costs and expenses paid, earned, and disbursed or upon request by any client at any time.

PAYMENT PLAN

For qualifying clients, Lai & Turner may offer a payment plan

Important Disclaimer Regarding Co-Counsel & Attorney Referrals

Co-counsel representation and attorney referrals are common in the legal profession. A “co-counsel” situation occurs when a second attorney works with the primary attorney on behalf of a client, with the client’s prior approval. Unless there is an addendum to the letter of engagement between the client and the primary attorney law firm, the primary attorney law firm is responsible for the work performed by the co-counsel.

Unless there is an addendum to the letter of engagement, the fees agreement between the client and the primary law firm applies to the co-counsel. An attorney referral occurs when one attorney refers a client and the client’s matter entirely to another attorney for handling.

The referring attorney has no role or accountability in the matter. The referring attorney may or may not receive a referral fee from the referred attorney for referring the client. The referred attorney creates the letter of engagement between them and the client.