Goodbye job applications, hello dream career
Seize control of your career and design the future you deserve with LW career

New firm makes strides in taking on ‘broken’ traditional model

After a successful launch “to make the legal profession a better place” by pushing back against “broken” pricing structures, the new firm has shared their recent success which it says has resonated within the Western Australian business community.

user iconTony Zhang 16 April 2020 NewLaw
New firm makes strides in taking on ‘broken’ traditional model
expand image

Emerging as a new player to shake up the legal market in Western Australia, Mason Ledger has updated Lawyers Weekly on how they are making strides through their unique model.

The support we have received from the Western Australian business community since launching Mason Ledger has been incredible, and we are very grateful,” executive chairman Chris Bates said.

“It seems our model is resonating with the business community, by providing clients with more choice in relation to how they engage with us.” 

Advertisement
Advertisement

In what has been referred to as a “first in the legal market”, the model seeks to combine the best of traditional law and NewLaw including offering hourly rates that are significantly lower than traditional law firms, value-based pricing, and a fully integrated recruitment and on demand lawyers solution.

In conversation previously with Lawyers Weekly, Mr Bates and managing partner Rebecca Johnston who is one of the youngest managing partners in Australia said that clients have told them that they “expect more from their lawyers and want certainty around cost, and we are listening”.

“We have stripped back all of the unnecessary costs involved with running national/international and major WA law firms, which the starting point is that we’re generally 25 per cent to 50 per cent more cost-effective than using those long-established firms that are set on doing things the way they’ve always been done,” Ms Johnston said.

Ms Johnston said that their clients and friends in other professional services firms have noticed that “our charge-out rates save them money from day one, and the fact we offer clients more choice on how they engage with lawyers has been really well received.”

The success of the new model was also replicated in their new appointment according to the firm.

Recently Mason Ledger appointed a new experienced special counsel Beth Robinson from BigLaw firm MinterEllison.

Carla Vinciullo who is a partner in Mason Ledger’s employment and workplace relations practice group who welcomed Ms Robinson to the team, says she will be able to enjoy better work-life balance and family time working four days a week.

In alignment with the firm’s new model Ms Vinciullo said that, Ms Robinson was charging out at $650 plus GST per hour last month, and can now service the Western Australian business community at $490 plus GST per hour – backed by value-based pricing options and their on demand lawyers team, “which is built around our ethos of delivering more value to clients.”

“Four of the five lawyers in our employment and workplace relations team (including me as a partner) are on flexible working arrangements and it’s simply a matter of treating our people with kindness, respect and empathy and managing based on outcomes that are linked to adding value to clients,” Ms Vincinullo said.

Ms Vinciullo said that Mason Ledger’s model has been specifically designed so that it’s a win-win for both clients and lawyers. 

“We’ve stripped the unnecessary costs out of running a law firm that are often built into the pricing models of the national/international law firms and reflected in their hourly rates, and pass these cost savings directly onto clients,” she said.

According to Mr Bates, the time-engaged model has many well-documented problems, that it can incentivise (at least subconsciously) lawyers to spend longer than necessary on a matter because that increases the profits of the firm. 

Mr Bates said that most law firms charge in six-minute increments without necessarily considering the value of the legal work from the client’s perspective

“Clients have long said this model is outdated, and we absolutely agree,” Mr Bates said.

Ms Johnston added that Mason Ledger’s value-based pricing model means that their clients always know the maximum legal spend on any particular matter, linked to achieving an outcome – with the costs agreed upfront and no surprises when they receive a bill.” 

Value-based pricing effectively aligns our interests with the client from day one, ensuring cost estimates are proportionate to the value of the outcome clients are looking to achieve, she said.

Mr Bates and Ms Johnston recently combined to launch Mason Ledger, a 23 person-strong firm boasting five partners and 14 lawyers joining as special counsel, senior associates and associates.

The launch of this new firm, the pair said, is “one of the most exciting and disruptive events the Australian legal profession has seen for over a decade”.

You need to be a member to post comments. Become a member for free today!