Bill with Confidence: Essential hourly billing strategies for legal professionals

Michael S. Leboff | Klein & Wilson

Michael S. LeBoff brings more than 22 years of business trial practice to Klein & Wilson, handling and winning high-stakes trials and arbitrations.

Mr. LeBoff attended Loyola Law School on a full academic scholarship, graduating second in his class of nearly 400 students. At Loyola, Mr. LeBoff received countless academic awards and served as an editor for the Loyola Law Review.

Mr. LeBoff developed his trial skills working at some of the finest law firms in Orange County where he had the opportunity to go up against Klein & Wilson in a complex joint venture litigation. Having developed mutual respect for each other’s skills and civility, Mr. LeBoff joined Klein & Wilson in 2016. Less than two years later, he was named the first new partner in the firm’s 25-year history.

Michael LeBoff represents clients of all sizes in a wide variety of business cases, including shareholder, partnership and joint venture disputes, trade secret claims, fraud, breach of contract, business torts, real estate, attorney fee disputes and legal malpractice actions.

Mr. LeBoff also spent a portion of his career in the client’s chair, as he served as in-house litigation counsel for ACC Capital Holdings, the parent company of large, nationwide financial services companies. During that time, Mr. LeBoff represented his client in consumer litigation, class actions, employment litigation, trade secret cases, and insurance coverage disputes. As in-house counsel, Mr. LeBoff managed nationwide litigation and worked daily with outside counsel to develop and implement cost-effective litigation strategies. Mr. LeBoff also reviewed and approved outside counsel bills and reported to senior management on significant litigation activities. In this role, Mr. LeBoff learned the importance of billing efficiencies and litigation results.

Mr. LeBoff served as a co-chair of the Professional Liability Litigation Committee of the American Bar Association’s Section of Litigation from 2019 to 2022. Mr. LeBoff currently serves as co-chair of the Section’s Young Lawyers Leadership Program. Mr. LeBoff also served three years as co-chair of the section’s largest committee, the Commercial and Business Litigation Committee, and currently co-chairs its Ethics Subcommittee.

I. Best practices for recording and describing time | 12:00pm – 12:20pm

II. Ethical rules relating to billing clients | 12:20pm – 12:40pm

III. Strategies to maximize collection and avoid fee disputes | 12:40pm – 1:00pm