About the Course
Introduction
This CLE course will discuss what the ethical rules of professional responsibility permit, require, and prohibit attorneys from doing when pricing their services, documenting fee arrangements, billing clients, and collecting delinquent balances. The panel will outline practical approaches for avoiding ethical violations, legal liability, and financial loss.
Description
Billing and fee collection have always been a complicated area for the legal profession. When billing disputes arise, practitioners must balance their financial interest in collecting fees against their duty of loyalty to clients. For this reason, billing disputes are subject to scrutiny.
To minimize client disputes over billing and fee collection and avoid ethical missteps, attorneys must immediately review and reconsider their policies and practices surrounding fee agreements, time tracking, and billing and collections.
Listen as our authoritative panel examines the ethical dilemmas inherent in law firm billing and collection practices and offers practical steps firms can take to avoid ethical violations and legal liability.
Presented By
Mr. Corsmeier represents attorneys in all matters concerning the Florida Bar and/or the Florida Board of Bar Examiners. He has numerous years of experience representing lawyers and applicants alike and will strive to help you understand the process to contribute a more effective strategy. Mr. Corsmeier is an expert in his field and will remain steadfast in representation.
Mr. Marx is an experienced litigator focused on helping companies and individuals resolve complex cases, particularly in the areas of telecommunications and legal ethics. He serves as Co-Chair of the firm’s Litigation & Investigations practice. For more than a decade, Mr. Marx has helped communications companies address critical issues in court and before regulators, including issues related to the Universal Service Fund, intercarrier tariff and compensation disputes, and the False Claims Act. He represents individuals and law firms in high-stakes professional responsibility proceedings. Mr. Marx has represented AMLaw 100 firms in several high-profile and high-dollar value disputes and successfully represented individuals in disciplinary proceedings before state and federal bar organizations.
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This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
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An excellent opportunity to earn Ethics CLE credits. Note: BARBRI cannot guarantee that this course will be approved for ethics credits in all states. To confirm, please contact our CLE department at pdservice@barbri.com.
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Date + Time
- event
Tuesday, September 22, 2026
- schedule
1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
I. Areas ripe for ethical missteps
A. Fee agreements
B. Timekeeping and charging expenses
C. Billing forms
II. Common ethical challenges and best practices for law firms
A. Resolving billing disputes
B. Charging interest on overdue bills
C. Withdrawing from a representation due to unpaid bills
D. Using a collection agency
E. Filing a lawsuit against a non-paying client
The panel will review these and other key issues:
- What are the ethical considerations related to billing for AI use?
- What ethics rules govern the billing and fee collection processes?
- What are some best practices counsel can use to collect past due fees while complying with ethics requirements?
- What options do practitioners have for resolving billing disputes with clients?
Related Courses
Implicit Bias in Legal Practice: Effects on Client Representation, Decision-Making, and Professional Relationships
Thursday, September 24, 2026
1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
Ethics of Client Billing and Fee Collection: Balancing Financial Interests and Fiduciary Obligations
Tuesday, September 22, 2026
1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
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