Suggested Fee Schedule
The Working Group believed that a voluntary fee schedule - as a guide for both lawyers and clients - should go hand in hand with the Practice Guidelines. We felt strongly that the client should be provided with a complete picture as to what they should expect in working with a lawyer. We had also hoped that the LSO would feel comfortable with the concept and actually support the promulgation of the schedule, as part of promoting public awareness, but ultimately the Working Group proceeded on its own with the initiative.
Meetings were convened with members of the practicing Bar in various centres across the Province for the purpose of receiving and considering comments and suggestions. As a matter of convenience these meetings were held immediately after the Law Society Meetings on the real estate transaction guidelines and amendments to the Rules of Professional Conduct. An on-line fee survey was conducted in order to better understand the range of fees charged across the province. The final product is the fee schedule that you can view by clicking on the link below. It is important to remember that lawyers are not bound in any way by the suggested fees set out in the schedule.
Suggested Fee Schedule (PDF)
In addition to the legal fees, there are numerous other fees, disbursements and taxes that clients will want to know about and prepare for. The Working Group has made available this calculator to assist lawyers calculate these and present them to your clients in a convenient format. Fill in a few boxes on the top of the calculator, edit the disbursement tab and you have a 2-page summary of the cost of the transaction, which compares your quoted fee to the suggested fee schedule. Print it out to review with your client or send it to them via email. We invite your comments and suggestions on this calculator (click here).
Additional Information for Lawyers
Many will recall the 1988 Orders of Prohibition issued against the Kent County Law Association and the Waterloo Law Association. To ensure we are not repeating history, we have obtained an advisory opinion from the Competition Bureau which determined that "the publication and dissemination of the proposed Suggested Fee Schedule, without more, would not provide the Commissioner with sufficient grounds to commence an inquiry..."
View the Competition Bureau's Advisory Opinion.
As additional background information on competition issues, you can view the Former Director of Investigation and Research for the Competition Bureau's speech notes that accompanied his speech delivered to (what was then) the Canadian Bar Association (Ontario) on the Competition Act and Professionals, by clicking on Speech Notes.