Three-quarters of lawyers believe they deliver ‘very good’ or ‘excellent’ value for money – but fewer that one-third of their clients agree, according to research published today.

LexisNexis’s mini bellwether report states that lawyers, under immense pressure to lower their fees, tend to equate value with price. ‘Having done so, they now feel they are offering their clients excellent value,’ the report says. ‘Clients, on the other hand, felt those fees were too high to begin with.’

More than four in 10 lawyers regard fixed fees as an opportunity, the report says. However, less than a quarter have made the shift from hourly billing. LexisNexis found fixed fees help to cement a better client relationship from the start by putting clients at ease, translating into more word-of-mouth referrals.

Nearly seven in 10 clients on fixed fees said they would ‘wholeheartedly’ recommend their lawyer, compared with 45% of those on hourly fees.