Lawyers are plagued by unpaid fees. Everybody complains, and everybody has a system for addressing it.

• One lawyer sends invoices weekly.
• Another lawyer has an amazing virtual assistant who calls clients and beats money out of them.
• A third lawyer is diligent about reminding clients to replenish their trust account balance.
• One lawyer I know runs credit checks.
• A lawyer down the block has the client sign a consent order to withdraw and keeps it on file.

The approaches are limited only by the creativity of the lawyers involved.

And yet, these lawyers are still complaining about unpaid fees.

These systems overcomplicate the situation. The solution is simple. You don’t need to come up with a fancy approach to this problem.

The Solution to Unpaid Fees

Here’s the deal: if you want to avoid uncollected fees, then you need to collect the fee in advance. That’s it. Feel free to stop reading now, because I’m just going to elaborate on that point.

Some things get paid before, and some things get paid after. It’s normal.

• Restaurant meals get paid after. Airplane tickets get paid before. It’s normal.
• Doctor visits used to get paid after. Now they usually get paid before. It’s normal.
• Rent gets paid before. Mortgages get paid before. Accountants get paid after. It’s normal.

What’s normal for a lawyer? There isn’t a normal. You get to define it. Some lawyers get paid before, and some lawyers get paid after.

If you want to be a lawyer with no unpaid invoices, then you need to be paid before.

Simple, right?

When you explain it to your new clients at the initial consultation, they’ll hear you and understand you. They’ll prove that they understood when they hand you a credit card, check, or a big pile of cash. Alternatively, they’ll thank you and explain that they aren’t going to hire you.

Either way, you won’t end up with an outstanding receivable.

What Are Your Excuses?

But, you say, if I make them pay in advance, they won’t hire me. You’re right. Some of them won’t hire you.

Those people who won’t hire you are also the most likely fee collection problems. You’re probably better off not having them hire you.

But, you say, I don’t know how much to have them pay in advance. You’re probably right. But, I promise that whatever you’ve been doing isn’t sufficient, so you need to increase it substantially. You also need to start paying attention, and you probably need some help being sure your trust account gets replenished before you do the work if it’s a protracted matter.

But, you say, they don’t have the funds to pay an increased amount. You’re right again. Some of them won’t have the cash. They need to put your fee on a credit card.

But, you say, they don’t have available credit. You’re right, and you don’t want to be the source of more credit. Trust that the credit card company has a reason for extending only so much credit to your client. Trust that it is a better judge of creditworthiness than you. Leave it to the experts.

But, you say, you’re really good at collecting your outstanding receivables. Good. If you’re really good at collections and you don’t mind the added cost and effort, then you’re not complaining. Just keep doing what you’re doing.