Retainer for Services1$1,400/case
Consulting & Field Services2$175/hour
Court Appearances, Depositions, Hearings, Other Testimony (Local)3 $200/hr
Travel Time4$100/hr
Mileage$0.55/mile
Field Assistant Time$90/hour
Office Assistant Time$50/hour
Handling Fee for Subcontracted Services710%
1Initial retainer is minimum fee for services and is non-refundable. Cases involving only desktop analysis are exempted from the minimum fee for services and are billed hourly according to the client's needs with a four hour minimum. Turn-around for desktop analysis cases is usually no more than five business days.
2Billed in tenths of the hour. Work & travel, including inactive out-of-area days, performed on Sundays and Holidays at the request of the client will be billed at double the normal rate.
3Minimum four hours. Travel time and mileage to and from apply. Travel time is billed portal to portal.
5Travel time is billed portal to portal. Inactive days at a travel location will be billed eight hours per day at the travel rate.
6Subcontracted services in excess of $250 will be pre-approved by the client.
Standard Rates & Travel
Knox & Associates accepts work on a case-by-case basis only. Payments and retainers are only for the instant case and do not obligate Knox & Associates to any future work. Upon acceptance of a case, Knox & Associates will require a retainer for each case, which will be applied to the first bill. The retainer amount will be equal to eight hours of service, which is the minimum required (except for desktop analysis cases). Initial retainers are non-refundable unless no work has commenced upon notice of cancellation. Knox & Associates may require that retainers be renewed upon exhaustion. Any subsequent retainer fees will be applied to the following bill. Times are billed in tenths of the hour.
Knox & Associates bills at the above-listed hourly rate for all consulting and field services; times are billed in tenths of the hour. Court appearances or other testimony will be performed at the above-listed hourly testimony rate with a four hour minimum. Clients not canceling court appearances within 48 hours may, at the discretion of Knox & Associates, be billed a $250 cancellation fee. Any expenses incurred due to cancellation, such as travel and lodging, which are non-refundable will be billed to the client. If the consultant has already traveled to the destination and cannot return home the day of cancellation notice, the client will be billed as though the appearance had taken place (minimum of four hours at the standard rate plus applicable travel rate). Preparation time for depositions may be billed at up to one-half hour (at the consulting & field services rate) for each hour of anticipated testimony for a maximum of four hours of preparation time. Court appearance preparation may be billed at a rate of one hour (at the consulting & field services rate) per hour of anticipated testimony for a maximum of eight hours of preparation time. Preparation time includes review of case materials and does not include conferences with attorneys or development of materials or exhibits to be used during testimony.
Travel mode will be at the discretion of Knox & Associates. Travel by car will be billed for mileage. Travel by airline will be booked and reimbursed at the business class level with the choice of airline at the discretion of Knox & Associates. Reasonable hotel accommodations, meals, and rental car fees will also be billed to the client. Work or travel performed on Sundays and holidays, including inactive days at an out-of-area venue, at the request of the client will be billed at double the normal rate.
Knox & Associates will submit all materials to the client via electronic format (PDF or JPG) unless otherwise requested by the client. All hardcopy materials provided by Knox & Associates will be billed at actual cost plus 10%. Time to compile and transmit the hardcopy materials will be billed at the above-listed office assistant hourly rate.
Billing
Payment for all field services will be made at the termination of the case, or at 30-day increments from the date the case was accepted, whichever comes first. Payment for testimony will be made within 10 business days following the appearance. All payments will be due within 10 business days following the billing date. Unpaid balances after 30 calendar days from the billing date will accrue interest at a simple interest rate of 0.05% per day retroactive back to the due date (11th business day following the billing date).
Periodically, Knox & Associates will subcontract certain services such as computer animations, engineering analysis, and automotive mechanics inspections from outside sources. All such services will be billed to the client at the rate provided by those services with the addition of a 10% handling fee for coordination and liaison activities. Payment for third-party services may be required in advance. Subcontracted services in excess of $250 will be pre-approved by the client.
Expenses
Expenses that have been reasonably and necessarily incurred, such as travel, rental car, gas, food, lodging, long distance and roaming telephone charges, Internet service, the cost of producing and/or re-producing documents and materials, the purchase of research materials specific to the instant case, and other professional services, are in addition to the consulting fee and will be billed to the client at cost. Any individual expense in excess of $250 will be pre-approved by the client and may be required in advance.
Limitations on Consulting Services
Knox & Associates does not accept cases on a contingent fee basis.
If asked to resign from a case, Knox & Associates will immediately cease work on the case and will relinquish, upon receipt of payment, all materials gathered by Knox & Associates prior to the resignation. However, Knox & Associates reserves the right to bill the client for services and costs incurred during the process of gathering and transmitting those materials. Incomplete reports will not be provided to the client after resignation from a case.
Reports, photographs, diagrams, and technical analysis worksheets remain the sole property of Knox & Associates and are copyrighted material. Any use of such material is limited to the proceedings of the instant case. Any further use of the materials must be by written consent of Knox & Associates with the terms of use and compensation being agreed upon.