Rates and how an hour is valued

Rate cards

A rate card holds rates in one currency, changing from a day. The firm keeps them at four levels:

• The firm, a rate per grade.
• A fee earner, a default rate and a rate per practice area.
• A client, for the rates agreed with them.
• A matter, for a rate agreed on that file alone.

Within a level, a rate for a particular activity comes before the general one.

The order the system looks

For each entry, the system takes the first rate it finds in this order:

1. The matter's rate.
2. The client's rate.
3. The fee earner's rate for the matter's practice area.
4. The fee earner's default rate.
5. The firm's rate for the fee earner's grade.

It looks for the rate in force on the day the work was done, in the matter's currency, never today's.

Changing a rate

Adding a new rate ends the current one the day before, in the same step, so two rates never apply on the same day.

No rate

Time recorded where no rate applies is saved at no value and flagged, so it is found and fixed rather than billed at nothing.