The Ethics of Outsourcing Legal Work

outsourced workers sitting at cubicles

Some personal injury law firms are nothing more than sweatshops with little attorney involvement.

This is an ad in Costa Rica for an outsourced demand writer at $4-$5 an hour:

law firm ad

Some highlights of the job requirements include:

“Negotiate clients’ entire case with insurance adjusters to obtain the highest settlement possible.”

“Responsible for identifying and drafting the appropriate ‘type’ of demand as required by the underlying facts and circumstances of each matter.”

I have no problem with law firms that want to outsource some of their work. I’ve seen some law firms use virtual assistants well. But it is clear that this is abdication, not delegation.

Giving somebody overseas $4-$5 an hour to draft demands, and then make them responsible for determining the type of demand to send and negotiating the case with the adjusters, is ridiculous.

I wonder if this law firm discloses this to the client when they are charging the client 33-40%?

How do you feel about this? Join the conversation with me on LinkedIn.

About the Author

Darl Champion is an award-winning personal injury lawyer serving the greater Metro Atlanta area. He is passionate about ensuring his clients are fully compensated when they are harmed by someone’s negligence. Learn more about Darl here.