Approach
All lawyers will tell you that they're experienced and knowledgeable about the full range of legal issues that might come up, that they'll move your deal along as fast as possible, that they'll draft all the necessary documents, and that they''ll do your work for a competitive fee (although some of those fees aren't that competitive). We will do all of those things too.
— OK, so what's different about working with us? —
We’ll help you get off to a great start.
We want to start our work for you on a project with a meeting, or phone call – your choice – with as many of the relevant participants as we can identify. At that time we’ll walk through the steps required for the transaction, figure out how those mesh with the other requirements for your project (such as, when will you have your bids?) and sketch out a timetable that includes deadlines both set by law and policy (when is the LGC application due?) and by your internal procedures (when do you need documents for the agenda package?). As best we can, we’ll begin with the end in mind and set a roadmap for the whole project. As we move on, it's our job to take the lead in helping us all get through the financing process.
We’ll agree on a fee at the beginning.
Once we know the basic parameters of a transaction, we’ll work with you to set a reasonable fee for the work. On almost all borrowings, we can set a fixed, flat, all-inclusive fee once we know what you need – what the project is, about how much you expect to borrow, your timetable for the project and the type of loan you’ll need.
- As experienced attorneys, we should be able to tell you how much this is going to cost you – the risk of matters diverging from plan should be on us, not on you. Similarly, we don’t believe in nickel-and-diming you for extra costs such as copying charges or travel expenses. If the parameters of the deal change materially, we’d want the chance to talk about changing the fee. But once we know what the deal is, we think you’re entitled to a fixed fee quote you can rely on.
- Fixed fees lend certainty to your budget process, and you never need to worry whether asking another question is going to cost you more. It also helps that we have a good reputation for competitive fees.
We’ll be there in person.
Sure, most of the time we “can” handle matters by phone call, by email or through the mail. But that’s not always the best way. We make it a point to visit you in person at the beginning of a transaction, to attend the key governing board meeting at which the matter will be considered, and then meet with you when it’s time to sign the closing documents.
- Our clients have told us that our willingness to show up is a real benefit of working with us, and that our in-person attendance is even more helpful than they thought it would be. The costs for attending these meetings will be part of our overall fee arrangement; there won’t be separate charges for time or expenses in attending these meetings.
- And sometimes, we'll come by (with no charge to you) just to check in and see how things are going. By building long-term relationships with our clients, we can have a better idea as to how you like to handle your business, and how one project fits in with the rest of what you have going on.
Our work for infrequent borrowers/developers
Working with local governments that don’t borrow money frequently is an important part of our practice. Many of these clients are small towns, but others may be larger units that simply don’t have much experience with the borrowing process (it may just be that the particular staffers haven’t been through the process).
- Most bond lawyers with experience similar to ours don't spend as much time with infrequent borrowers as we do. We think we have particular insight into how these borrowers experience the financing process – the kinds of questions they may have, for example, or the parts of the process that they are more likely to find difficult to understand (not that the process is so complicated; it’s just that sometimes you have to wonder why the law makes you do certain things). We think we are a good fit for these clients because the nature of our practice helps us better understand their particular concerns, and that allows us to help them comfortably and confidently through the financing process.
References
Nothing can give you a better idea of what it is like to work with us than to talk with our clients. Once you determine that a lawyer has sufficient expertise in the legal areas where you need representation, talking with clients will tell you more about the lawyer’s qualifications -- and about whether that lawyer is the right fit for you -- than you will ever get from a multiple-page listing of completed transactions or printed biographical information
- If what you are looking for are lawyers who are easy to talk to, responsive to your needs, available to you in-person when that’s what you want, and who is respectful of you as an individual, as a customer and as a representative of your constituents, then you simply have to talk to other clients of the lawyers you are considering. Nothing else can tell you what you want to know. Contact us if you’d like a list of references from deals similar to the one you may be considering.
