Law That You Can Afford : Self-Help Law, Limited Legal Services : MyLawyer.com : Law That You Can Afford

When lawyers offer "unbundled legal services" to their clients they offer only those services that the client wants to pay for, leaving to the client those tasks that the client can do for herself. "Unbundled legal services" is also called "discrete task representation" because the attorney only undertake legal fees for the client. The client is back in control.

A good example of unbundled legal services in the family law area is lawyer preparation of the legal pleadings for a no-fault and uncontested divorce bundled with legal advice for a fixed fee, leaving to the client other tasks such as service on the opposing party and self-representation at the divorce hearing. Hearings for a no-fault and uncontested divorce are primarily administrative in nature, with the Judge or Master conforming the accuracy of the documents and establishing a record that the divorce is consensual and that all the requirements of time of separation and proper service have been satisfied. Most pro se parties can handle these tasks by themselves without the presence of an attorney, thus saving hundreds of dollars in legal fees.

I know this to be a fact from my own experience, because the virtual law firm family law practice that I operate in Maryland has served hundreds of pro se parties seeking their own uncontested divorce during the last four years.

If you want to save on legal fees, look for an attorney in your area who is willing to provide "unbundled legal services". I have been compiling a list of these law firms in different states for the past year. If you have a problem finding an attorney in your state, send me an email and I will see if I can help you identify one.

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 I am offering an on-line course on "unbundling legal services" with a particular focus on how to offer limited legal services over the Internet.  "Limited legal services" is another name for "unbundled legal services."The course begins the week of June 1, 2009 and there will be 7 sessions over a 12 week period. By the end of the course participants will have developed a design for an "unbundled legal service" that can be integrated with their traditional law practice. Topics include: how to "unbundle" legal services by task or by issue; how to create and price an on-line service; marketing of on-line "unbundled legal services"; and ethical and regulatory requirements for offering "unbundled legal services."

For a detailed syllabus go to: Solo Practice University

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I joined up as faculty with Solo Practice University last week. This is a new online educational venture started by Susan Carter Liebel , a coach and consultant to solo practices. Law schools really don't teach law students how to open a solo practice -- they are too busy training students for large law practice for which many of their students aspire but very few achieve. This program will be a welcome addition to bar association CLE courses as it focuses on the needs of solos, who still make up the largest percentage of practicing lawyers.

I am going to develop a course on how to offer what is known as limited legal services or "unbundled legal services" both online and offline. My plan is to use pre-recorded video, discussion groups, an online blog, and email to help course participants develop a business plan for increasing and diversifying their revenue base. I am looking forward to this learning experience in how to deliver legal services online.

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Bernardo Granwehr has launched Iowa's first virtual law firm focusing on family law matters and wills at IowaLawyerOnLine. The law firm offers legal forms bundled with legal advice for fixed price. For example, Iowa Divorce Forms with Minor Children sells for $299.00 and a Will sells for $100.00. The divorce services are designed for pro se itigants. The web site is powered by our DirectLaw hosted service which includes the Rapidocs web-enabled document automation capability. Cllients complete on-line questionnaires which generate completed forms and documents ready for attorney review. The use of a web-enabled document automation capability keeps the cost of document  creation to a minimum enabling the attorney to spend time giving legal advice and additional custom-drafting at still make a reasonable fee for the time expended.

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The “unbundled law” law movement is expanding.  "Unbundled" or "limited legal services" is a form of legal service delivery where lawyers represent clients for provide a limited and discrete service for a fixed fee. This is a good alternative for consumers who cannot afford to pay a law firm to handle every aspect of their case, which can be costly.

When a law firm delivers a limited legal service, the client does part of the work, and the law firm does part of the work. For example, in an contested divorce case, the law firm will prepare all of the forms and provide legal advice, but the client attends the divorce hearing, which is often just a formality, without the benefit of counsel. By eliminating counsel at the hearing, the client saves the additional cost of paying for the lawyer’s time to attend the hearing, and the usual waiting time that precedes the hearing itself. This can result in a significant cost saving.

For additional information on this trend see; UnBundled Law  and the American Bar Association's Pro Se/Unbundling Resource Center, published by the ABA Standing Committee on the Delivery of Legal Services.

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