After graduating law school, I began my legal career working for Reed Smith, one of the premier firms in Pittsburgh. I quickly realized that the large corporations that the firm represented often relied on the firm’s lawyers to provide counsel and advice before making decisions that could impact their legal rights. That seemed smart to me; after all, as the old saying goes: “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”, and nowhere is that adage more true than in the law. In other words, by getting good legal advice early, a company can find a good resolution to a problem without getting involved in expensive litigation. Executives and managers consulted with the firm’s lawyers before making business decisions, including whether, when and how to terminate an employee’s employment, whether to enter into a contract proposed by another company and whether a breach of contract was worth pursuing in court.
When I left Reed Smith and started my own practice in 1994, I decided that I wanted to make good, sound and practical legal advice readily available to individuals and small businesses, not just large corporations. And, I decided to do that at a cost that individuals and small businesses can afford.
I offer consultations with clients for a flat fee – typically one hour of my time. If I spend more than an hour reviewing the relevant documents and meeting with you, I do not charge anything extra. You know up front how much the consultation is going to cost and you can spend as much time with me as is necessary to get all your questions answered.
Before you make any decision that could have an impact on your legal rights or responsibilities or could end you up in court if you choose incorrectly, call me and schedule a consultation.
Here are some of the types of legal matters where consulting with me may benefit you:
- Review of employment agreements and non-competition clauses
- Review of severance agreements and releases
- Review of contracts and other legal documents
- Legal issues relating to your employment, including performance reviews, possible termination or other disciplinary matters
- Possible business disputes and issues
- Issues relating to small business operations, including hiring and firing issues, non-competition issues, potential litigation