According to Article 105 of the EOA, attorneys’ fees must correspond to adequate economic compensation for services rendered; they must be paid in money and can take the form of a fixed fee. Lawyers consider the importance of the services provided, the difficulty and urgency of the subject, the degree of intellectual creativity in their work, the result obtained, the time spent, the liabilities they take on and other professional issues.
The fees thus cover all intellectual services as well as professional practice before the courts, public administration, official bodies and private entities.
For certain legal services, such as case study and follow-up, drafting of contracts in general, opinions, letters, office consultations or telephone consultations, our fees are calculated at a fixed hourly rate. For other services, such as the incorporation of companies, elaboration of models for standard contracts, a fixed flat rate is applied.
For services rendered under the flat-rate fee agreement, fees are calculated based on an average monthly or annual estimate of hours, considered as the minimum necessary to guarantee the consistent availability of lawyers allocated to the client during the term of the contract.
To allow its clients to budget and pay their fees, Cavaleiro Machado & Associados, when it is hired, presents a forecast of fees for the intended services, based on an estimate of the hours and lawyers allocated for the requested legal service. It favours periodic invoicing for services rendered during their performance in order to allow its clients better control over costs.