Trepanier MacGillis Battina P.A. 8000 Flour Exchange Building 310 Fourth Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55415 612.455.0500
Trepanier MacGillis Battina P.A. 8000 Flour Exchange Building 310 Fourth Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55415 612.455.0500

Initial Consultation

Trepanier MacGillis Battina P.A. law firm charges an initial $750 consultation “flat fee” covering up to two (2) hours of legal consultation for new clients as follows:

1 CLEARING CONFLICTS:

Before we can represent you, you must notify us in writing of your full legal name, mailing address, phone number, and private e-mail address. You must identify the names of all “adverse” and “related” parties involved in your legal matter. Before representing you, we must notify you that we do not have any ethical conflicts of interest.

2 EXECUTION OF INITIAL CONSULTATION POLICY:

Before we will represent you, you must sign and agree to the terms of this Initial Legal Consultation Policy and Client Agreement by returning it to us.

3 ACCEPTANCE:

This Agreement is subject to the acceptance of Trepanier MacGillis Battina P.A. We may decline to accept you as a client for any reason (e.g., if your legal problem does not fit into our practice areas, if we have an ethical conflict of interest, or an attorney is not available to speak with you by any deadline you provide).

4 CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION AND DOCUMENTS:

Do not send any confidential information or documents to us until we clear all ethical conflicts of interest and notify you that we are accepting you as a client.

5 PAYMENT:

You must pay the $750 fee by credit card prior to the consultation. The fee will become earned once the initial consultation is completed. The fee will not be held in a trust account until earned and will become the Firm’s property subject to refund. You will be entitled to a refund of all or a portion of the fee if the agreed-upon services are not provided.

6 QUESTIONNAIRE:

Before we will schedule or provide the initial legal consultation, you must fully complete and return a detailed questionnaire describing your legal issue and your specific legal question(s).

7 DOCUMENTS:

Before we will schedule or provide the initial legal consultation, you must send us PDF or paper copies of all relevant documents including all contracts and documents you are seeking legal advice about.

8 SCHEDULING:

Once you have completed the above steps, we will contact you to schedule the initial consultation with one of our attorneys by phone or videoconference. With our agreement, it may occur in-person at our office in Minneapolis.

9 SCOPE OF SERVICES:

If we accept your matter, we will spend up to two (2) hours reviewing your facts and documents, attempting to answer the specific legal questions identified in your questionnaire, and giving you advice about your options and strategies. This is an “advice only” consultation and the flat fee covers only two (2) hours of attorney time.

10 LIMITATIONS:

This is a “limited scope engagement” under the Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct and does not cover any services beyond those listed above. The flat fee does not include legal research, out-of-office contacts, phone calls or conferences with anyone but you, letter drafting, communications with adverse parties or their legal counsel, document preparation or revisions, preparing or filing court papers, or appearances before any court, arbitrator, tribunal, or agency.

11 COST OF ADDITIONAL SERVICES:

If the consultation extends beyond two (2) hours or you request additional legal work: (a) You agree to pay for the extra time spent at our standard hourly rates (currently $325 – $495 for senior attorneys, $180 – $275 for associate attorneys, and $75-$150 for law clerks and legal assistants) plus all out-of-pocket expenses; (b) You must pay all invoices within ten (10) days of the date of invoice; (c) You must pay a late charge of eight percent (8%) per annum on all overdue invoices; (d) You may be required to sign a separate Legal Services Agreement which includes additional or different terms; and (e) You may be required to pay an additional “retainer” payment which will be placed in our trust account before we perform any additional work.

12 TERMINATION:

Either you or Trepanier MacGillis Battina P.A. may terminate the attorney-client relationship for any reason by providing written notice to the other party.

To schedule a consultation, contact office manager Joni Spratt at 612.455.6214 or jspratt@trepanierlaw.com.