Our Philosophy - What We Can Do For You
Our Role
Our role as commercial solicitors is to apply our commercial experience to your problems and your business to provide cost effective legal advice that allows you to solve your legal problems in a timely manner and move on with your business and your life.
There is no doubt that solving legal problems or settling them in a timely fashion should be the absolute objective of all Perth commercial law firms.
Value For Money
Very few Perth law firms explain their hourly rates in their websites. Too many staff working at high hourly rates is the cause of over servicing and over charging.
Before any step is taken or advice given, we turn our mind to the cost and benefit to the client. This is reflected in practical advice which includes the cost of implementing any advice given.
Our hourly rates are fixed at $220 to $370 per hour depending on the complexity of the matter. We are not aware of any better hourly rates and for complex commercial litigation our hourly rates are generally lower than other litigation firms.
Our cost effectiveness arises from our specialisation which leads to prompt assessment of tasks. Our specialisation means things are done once and done correctly. We brief specialist barristers for our trials charging $350 - $380 per hour compared with partners in large firms who aren't as experienced charging $500 per hour.
We are more than happy to provide quotations on legal fees wherever possible.
Speed
Lawyers are sometimes accused of delay. Our commitment is to have instructions acted upon as soon as they are received. We have implemented a computer system of case management to achieve efficiency and ensure your instructions are dealt with quickly and cases are finished as soon as possible.
This efficiency helps reduce costs. Only with our high standard of legal knowledge and specialisation can we pledge to undertake matters with a quick turnaround without the quality of work suffering.
What We Can Do For You
As a Western Australian Law Firm we can provide a large commercial law firm approach to commercial litigation with small firm personal service:
- Ensure that where possible, law clerks carry out simple matters at a lower hourly rate so that excessive hourly rates are not charged for simple tasks;
- Provide service to clients outside usual business hours;
- Provide regular updates to clients on the status of their files;
- Provide free advice to clients as and when needed by clients as an extra service;
- Advise clients on the best method of settling disputes, whether that be by mediation, arbitration, informal meetings or court applications;
- The court system in Western Australia has adopted a strict process of case monitoring and pre-trial conferences so that the parties must meet face to face to resolve issues. Our philosophy is, to speak with the solicitors acting for the other side at an early stage and if necessary arrange meetings between all the parties to see if actions can be settled. Legal fees should only be incurred in a commercial dispute when the other side is unwilling to make any proposal for settlement; Then we start proceedings and move to trial as urgently as possible.
- Provide free advice on the best debt recovery methods used by dedicated debt collection agencies and applying those procedures to debt recovery with the benefit of legal advice being provided at every stage.
- Aherns Lawyers maintains strong relationships with Barristers at the Independent Bar in Western Australia from whom we obtain regular opinions for clients. It is our philosophy, when necessary, to obtain an opinion from a Barrister at an early stage of any action in that Barrister's area of expertise. Some law firms are loathe to give away fees by briefing experienced Barristers and have a philosophy of retaining all of the work in-house. Many Barristers however with particular expertise in certain areas can provide very cost effective and expert advice on the prospects of prosecuting an action or successfully defending a claim.
- We also work very closely with accountants who are able to provide Aherns Lawyers' clients with quick telephone advice at any time.
Your Business
At Aherns Commercial Lawyers Perth and Fremantle we understand that you need your solicitors to understand your business, your priorities and your need for practical plain English legal advice.
We give you immediate advice on legal costs and your chances of success of any Perth Commercial Litigation disputes.
At Aherns Commercial Solicitors Perth and Fremantle we have a broad spectrum of clients including companies in building and construction, financial institutions, small business and individuals. Most of our clients have been with us for more than ten years and we are happy to provide references if you would like to discuss our services directly with any of our clients.
We recognise that your business needs do not arise simply between 9am and 5pm on weekdays and we are available at all hours 7 days a week and indeed encourage you to contact us at any time to obtain quick legal advice.
Reporting and Access
All of our staff are accessible both during and after office hours. Each client's needs are different and we feel that familiarisation with your work practices is important to enable us to prepare advice tailored for you.
Therefore, we prefer to attend your business premises when possible and to regularly discuss our advice and documentation with you.
Our commitment is to pro-actively report as to the progress of each matter being handled by us. Updates, either written or over the telephone, are available for when you need them, such as before Board meetings.
Hourly Rates
Because our practice is located outside of the Perth CBD our hourly rates are significantly lower than the standard rates charged by most Perth Law Firms practising in commercial law and commercial litigation in Perth.
We deliver practical cost effective legal advice. Our rates are extremely competitive compared to the rates charged by most commercial law firms.
See the Hourly Rates page on the website for more detail on our hourly rates.
