A client sat across from me last week with a familiar concern. “I need to get this done for my family,” he said, “but I’ve heard stories about legal bills that just keep growing. I don’t want any surprises.” It’s a fear I understand completely. When you are planning for the most important people in your life, the last thing you need is the anxiety of a ticking clock every time you have a question.
This is precisely why, for the vast majority of the estate planning work we do at my firm, we use a flat-fee model. It is not just a billing preference—it is a matter of principle. It aligns our interests with yours from the very first meeting.
The Problem with the Billable Hour
The traditional billable hour model has its place in law, particularly in litigation where the scope of work is unpredictable. For estate planning, however, I find it creates the wrong incentives. It can discourage the very thing most critical to building a durable plan: open and thorough communication.
When a client knows they are being charged for every six-minute increment, they might hesitate to call with a follow-up question about a potential trustee. They might rush a decision about a guardian for their children. The focus shifts from the quality of the deliberation to the time spent deliberating. This is the opposite of what we want. Planning your legacy is a process of intentional stewardship, not a race against a clock.
My role is not just to draft documents. It is to counsel you through some of the most significant decisions you will ever make. That requires a relationship built on trust, not one where you watch the clock while I log my time. A flat fee removes that barrier entirely.
How a Flat Fee Creates a Better Relationship
When we agree on a flat fee for your estate plan, you know the total cost of our engagement before we begin. This simple act changes the dynamic of our relationship for the better. It transforms the process from a transaction into a collaboration.
Here is how it works in our practice:
- Initial Consultation: We have an in-depth conversation about your family, your assets, your concerns, and what you want to achieve. We discuss wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and healthcare directives.
- Plan Design and Quoting: Based on that conversation, I design a plan that addresses your specific circumstances. I then provide a clear, written engagement letter that outlines the scope of the work and the fixed fee for the entire project.
- Drafting and Review: Once engaged, we draft all necessary documents. We then meet again to review every page together, ensuring you understand not just what the documents say, but what they do.
- Execution: The final step is the formal signing ceremony, where we ensure every document is executed with the precision required by New York law.
Throughout this process, you are free to call, email, or schedule follow-up meetings without fearing another invoice. The fee is fixed. This allows us to focus exclusively on the task at hand—creating a prudent and effective plan for your family’s future.
What a Flat Fee Must Cover
A proper flat fee is not just for the will itself. It must cover the entire process of putting your foundational plan in place. This includes the counseling, the strategy, the drafting, and—critically—the formal execution of the documents.
The execution ceremony is more than a formality. In New York, a will’s validity hinges on strict adherence to specific legal requirements. Under Estates, Powers and Trusts Law (EPTL) § 3-2.1, a will must be signed at the end by the testator in the presence of at least two attesting witnesses, who must also sign. A failure to follow these procedures precisely can give someone grounds to challenge the will in Surrogate’s Court later on. Our flat fee ensures this crucial step is handled meticulously by an experienced attorney.
For plans involving a revocable trust, the fee also covers the initial process of funding the trust—the critical step of retitling assets into the trust’s name. A trust without assets is just an empty vessel. We guide our clients through this process to ensure the plan works as intended.
There are, of course, situations where an hourly rate is more appropriate. These typically involve ongoing work with an indeterminate scope, such as administering a complex trust after someone has passed away or representing a client in a contested matter in Brooklyn’s Surrogate’s Court. In those cases, we are always transparent about why an hourly arrangement is necessary.
But for the foundational work of planning your estate, a flat fee provides the clarity every family deserves. It allows us to be the counselors we are meant to be, focused solely on the stewardship of your legacy.
If you are beginning to consider your family’s future, the first step is often to organize your thoughts. We have prepared a Personal Asset and Family Inventory worksheet for this purpose. You can call our office to request a copy to help you prepare for a productive initial conversation.
