Billing & Collections

In 2011, ALPS formalized its commitment to education and risk management with the advent of ALPS Educational Services (AES). With over two decades of working in all phases of the professional liability insurance industry — from underwriting to sales, to marketing and education — there are real benefits ALPS brings to our policyholders and the legal profession. Not only does ALPS provide premier protection to its policyholders, but we have always been committed to Continuing Legal Education and risk management programs.

In order to provide our insureds and the larger legal community with practical solutions to help avoid risk and strengthen practices and professional lives, we offer the following free resources, with more to be added in the...

Wow! My second post here at ALPS411. I was thrilled to be invited back and decided to follow up my last post on solo construction practice in the cloud with a more specific post that is near and dear to my heart as a construction attorney here in Virginia. Namely mediation and how it can help lawyers (solo or otherwise) and their clients reach a business decision in the face of an the emotional roller coaster of litigation or other methods of dispute resolution.

I can speak to this truth from two perspectives: the litigator representing a client and the mediator whose role is to assist the parties reach a resolution in a neutral fashion. 

As a litigator and counselor I almost (though not quite) always recommend mediation at some point during...

When discussing past malpractice claims or disciplinary matters with attorneys, I often hear statements along the lines of “I knew I shouldn’t have agreed to take that client on” or “That was one of those no good deed goes unpunished situations.” Effective risk management begins with client screening, and those statements strongly suggested that there was room for improvement in that area. If the above statements ring true for you now and again, regardless of whether a claim or complaint ever arose, consider taking some time to reflect upon your own client screening practices.

While I believe that most attorneys are skilled at screening potential new matters, not as many are as effective when it comes to screening potential new clients. Yes,...

As the Social Media Community Manager for ALPS, I cruise a lot of law blogs (blawgs) and discussion groups each day. Over the last couple of months I’ve been paying particular attention quite a bit to comments about smartphone applications for lawyers.

These applications run the gamut of document management to tracking billable hours and beyond. Whether if you’re an iPhone user or a proud proponent of Google’s Android smartphone, there’s an app or apps out there for the seasoned lawyer, the solo startup, or the law student.

Below you’ll find what my research has shown to be the most popular and/or offers the most functionality for the mobile legal practitioner using iOS or Android based apps. There are hundreds that can help lawyers increase...

Recently one of ALPS' Claims Attorneys, Mike Flaherty, presented to the Knoxville Chapter of the ALA on the issue of suing your clients for fees. I developed content for that presentation and heard from Mike that the session was well attended by ALA members. In fact, Mike was slated for a 30 minute presentation, but because there were so many questions, he stayed for a full hour. Obviously this is a burning topic for legal administrators and attorneys right now. I’d like to share my tips on this issue to help you avoid the risks that are incurred if you are faced with suing your clients for fees. In addition to the tips below for collecting your fees, take a look at ALPS Risk Management Report on Billing and Collection.

Suing your client for...