How to Reduce Legal Fees When Selling Your Practice

You need professionals to properly sell your medical or dental practice. That includes an attorney. Legal fees can get hefty if the transaction is complex or not properly managed. Fortunately, there a ways Sellers can pay only the necessary legal fees and avoid unexpected large bills. Listed below are common tips on managing legal fees in a sales transaction.

Hire an Attorney.

You might first think that if you do not hire an attorney, you can save lots of money. Well, that is wrong. Drafting and negotiating legal contracts is not a do-it-yourself exercise. If they told you that on YouTube, forget it. If fact, when you do-it-yourself, you pay for legal services twice: once, when a qualified attorney has to undo what you did, and second, when that attorney has to do the work the right way.

Engage a Transactions Attorney.

Like most professionals, attorneys vary in their skillsets. Transaction attorneys know what the sale process is. They have standard forms and practices they can use. They operate efficiently which saves you money. You might have used an estates attorney for you will or a family attorney for your divorce. They are good at those specialties. However, when you ask these professionals to manage your sale transaction, they have the "learn" what to do --- at your expense.

Smaller Law Firms Might be a Better Fit

With large law firms you might get a large legal team for your transaction. That team might include a transaction attorney, a regulatory attorney, a real estate attorney, a business attorney, a litigation advisory attorney, a contracts attorney, their junior attorneys and paralegals, and the billable hours that come along with them. Smaller law firms tend to operate more efficiently which might save you money.

Ask Your Healthcare Intermediary for Standard Documents Your Attorney Can Reference.

Healthcare intermediaries see many transactions like yours. They typically have asset purchase agreement forms that your attorney can use as starting points for drafting documents for you. These forms are not meant to replace the attorney's work; they are merely used to highlight to the attorney common legal issues in these transactions. Attorneys starting with these forms may save them time and you money.

Don't Allow Your Attorney to Renegotiate Your Deal.

Attorneys that do not practice transactional work might have the tendency to "re-litigate" or "renegotiate" your transactions. These actions can cost you dearly. First, it might make the Buyer feel as if you did not bargained in good faith. Second, your relationship with the Buyer might become strained or the Buyer may become skeptical of the deal and bail. Finally, the terms and conditions relate back to the price which will probably change. You might find yourself starting all over.

Encourage Your Attorney to Keep in Communication with Your Healthcare Intermediary.

The role of the healthcare intermediary is like a quarterback on a football team. The healthcare intermediary ensures that all team players, including your attorney, are executing the same play. Encourage your attorney to keep the healthcare intermediary in the communication loop. The healthcare intermediary has a feel for what the Buyer is looking for and what roadblock could slow down the selling process. Excluding the healthcare intermediary from sidebar conversations hurts the ultimate goal of getting your transaction sold and closed quickly