The billable hour isn’t dead—but the way clients think about paying for legal work is changing. In this episode, I’m joined again by Jonathan Sablone of Sablone Advisory LLC to talk about the business side of litigation: what lawyers charge, what clients actually want from their fee arrangements, how companies manage legal spend, and what happens when litigation itself becomes an investment. We start with attorney fees. Jonathan walks me through fixed fees, capped fees, value-based pricing, and the monthly fixed-fee model he uses as fractional general counsel. One theme comes through pretty clearly: for clients, the issue isn’t always getting the lowest possible price. Certainty and value matter. Knowing what something will cost—and what you’re getting for that money—can be just as important. Of course, litigation has a habit of making budgets difficult. The other side gets a vote, cases evolve, and a matter that looked manageable can turn into scorched-earth litigation. We talk about the tradeoffs that come with alternative fee arrangements, how pricing can affect staffing and incentives, and the pressure in-house legal departments face to stay within budgets while defending the company. Then we turn to litigation finance, particularly how corporations use third-party funding to pursue affirmative claims without consuming the legal budget they need for defense work. Jonathan explains how funders evaluate cases, why having a strong claim is only the beginning, and why economics, strategy, timing, risk, and potential return all matter. We also get into litigation finance as an alternative asset class, why institutional investors are attracted to its potential returns and lack of correlation with broader markets, and how delays in the court system can change the investment equation. And if a company thinks it has a case worth funding? Jonathan has some practical advice: don’t just call a funder and dump a million documents into a data room. Prepare the case for funding first. Understand the economics. Explain the strategy and timeline. And identify the weaknesses before the funder finds them. It’s a conversation about legal fees, litigation budgets, risk, return, and the increasingly sophisticated economics behind modern litigation. Jump in to hear Jonathan’s perspective on what clients really want from their lawyers, how litigation finance is changing the options available to companies, and why the business of litigation deserves as much attention as the legal strategy itself. If you enjoy the episode, subscribe, share it with a colleague, and leave a review. And I’d be interested to hear: What fee arrangement—or litigation funding model—have you seen work particularly well? ______________________________________ Thanks for listening! If you like what you hear please give us a rating. You'd be amazed at how much that helps. If you have questions for Tom or would like to participate, you can reach him at Editor@LitigationConferences.com. Ask him about creating this kind of content for your firm -- podcasts, webinars, blogs, articles, papers, and more. Tom on LinkedInEmerging Litigation Podcast on LinkedInEmerging Litigation Podcast on the HB Litigation site
