How can an advocate verify that work has been completed if the client refuses to sign the report?

When billing by the hour, the primary document for determining the fee may be a detailed report on the time spent by the advocate and the work performed. To prevent the client from withholding payment, the contract should specify in advance the procedure for submitting and approving such a report.

Advocate Diana Yanko discussed this during the webinar «Effective client relations: practical experience in building transparent relationships, ethical communication and proper documentation». The event was organized by the UNBA NextGen in the Kharkiv region and moderated by regional representative Kateryna Dyoma.

For complex cases, the speaker advised including a provision in the contract stating that the scope, procedure, and terms of providing legal assistance are to be determined in separate supplementary agreements. Each such agreement can cover a separate court case, criminal proceeding, stage, or area of the client’s activities requiring the involvement of an advocate. It must specify the scope of the retainer, the limits of the advocate’s authority, and the amount and method of payment of the fee. This gives the client a clear understanding of exactly what work they are paying for, when, and how much.

D. Yanko described hourly billing as appropriate for lengthy, complex, and unpredictable cases in which the fee amount depends on the actual time spent. In such cases, the advocate keeps track of the time spent and, upon completion of the billing period specified in the contract, sends the client a detailed report listing the work performed.

The contract may also specify a timeframe within which the client must review the report and submit written, substantiated objections. The wording proposed by the speaker stipulates that, in the absence of objections within this timeframe, the report is deemed approved, and the services are considered to have been provided properly, in full, and accepted without reservations.

To this end, the contract must specify the agreed-upon channels of electronic communication: email addresses, phone numbers, and specific messaging apps. If the client uses a nickname, this should also be noted in the contract. In that case, correspondence and screenshots can confirm exactly with whom the exchange of information and documents took place.

Additional expenses that could not have been foreseen at the time the contract was signed should also be documented through the agreed-upon channels. As an example, D. Yanko cited a message specifying the amount of necessary expenses and requesting confirmation, along with the client’s reply: «I agree».

The same procedure can be applied to the final report following the termination or early cancellation of the contract. If the report is sent via an agreed-upon method and the client does not raise any objections within the specified time frame, the «tacit consent» provided for in the contract allows for the acceptance of the completed work to be documented.

According to D. Yanko, consistently documenting approvals and completed actions makes it possible to confirm that the advocate has properly fulfilled their obligations. «If a conflict arises with a client in the future and you have been diligently documenting approvals with the client, it won’t take you long to protect yourself and prove that you are in the right», - she concluded.