When Georgina Hamblin launched her eponymous firm less than three years ago, she set out to ‘do something really unique in the family law space’.
At the time – as remains true today – many clients, barristers and solicitors themselves felt there was a case for a new model that would eliminate some of the uncertainty from the already daunting process of going through a divorce.
‘The idea of fixed fees within family law is something that has terrified litigators for years, and it seemed like an impossible thing to offer,’ Hamblin explains.
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However, drawing on more than a decade of experience, including her tenure as head of Vardags’ London family team, she decided that it was ‘time to take the risk and see how to make the model work financially, while still making a profit and making sure clients know exactly what they are paying for upfront’.
‘So I took the leap,’ Hamblin says, noting that ‘it felt like quite a scary thing’ at the time to commit to offering fixed fees for every case, no matter how complex or specialised they might be.
Hamblin’s fixed-fee model made an immediate splash in the industry, perhaps because competitors have taken note that by moving the focus away from maximising billable hours, it may put downward pressure on fees across the industry.
‘When I say to my competitors that we offer fixed fees on every case, they have a look of fear in their faces,’ she says. ‘And they are right to,’ she adds.
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Under an hourly model, people are incentivised to keep the clocks running, but Hamblin sees the fixed-fee structure as a firm-wide commitment to clients. ‘Some [clients] can be fearful that fixed fees means we are going to be less emotionally available […] but I am fully committed to being as available as needed.’
After her spell in one of the largest and most visible firms in London’s divorce courts, Hamblin’s focus is shifting to building a boutique offering. ‘There is a drive from HNW individuals towards boutique firms like mine,’ she notes. ‘We will know the cases inside out, and […] offer personal support that feels more individual.’
One thing Hamblin says she loves about her industry’s evolution in recent years is the emergence of an entrepreneurial spirit among her peers. But while she sees firms slowly starting to experiment with elements of her fixed-fee approach, she remains unaware of any that have applied it to complex children disputes or challenging HNW cases – the very areas where her model can make the biggest difference.
[This feature first appeared in Spear’s Magazine issue 98. Click here to subscribe]
