Step 1: Deposit of Funds to Escrow
Once you have selected a contract lawyer for your assignment and our system has created a work order, you must deposit 50% of the estimated cost of the assignment into the escrow account created for that assignment. A pop-up will appear informing you of this. If an assignment payment is less than $500, you will be prompted to deposit the full sum into the escrow, and the transfer will take place in just one step rather than the two as outlined below.
As soon as the funds are deposited, your assignment becomes active and a new assignment page is created. You will then be able to view time entries, drafts of the work, documents, and expenses as entered by the attorney. You will also be able to see the status of the escrow account.
All deposits can be made via bank transfer (ACH), eCheck, domestic wire transfer, or credit card.* The deposit fees to be taken out of the law firm's end are as follows:
- Amounts up to $5,000 garner a transfer fee of 1.5% of the amount
- Amounts from $5,000 to $50,000 garner a transfer fee of $75 + 1% of the amount over $5,000
* Credit card transactions will be charged an additional 3%.
Step 2: Release of Funds from Escrow
Upon completion of 50% of the assignment (either 50% of the estimated number of hours, or in a flat fee assignment 50% of the entire assignment), the contract lawyer may send a request to the law firm to release the funds in Escrow by clicking the, “I’m half way done, pay me” button on the Assignment Monitoring Page. The law firm can review the work progress and either:
Approve the request and instruct payment to the contract lawyer by clicking on the "Transfer First Payment to the Assignee" button. Once the button is clicked, the 50% deposit will be released to the K-Lawyer’s account. The remaining 50% + expenses will be deposited into the escrow account.
OR
Raise an issue with the work progress by clicking the "Dispute Payment" button. At any point while the assignment is active, the Dispute button will be available to use. When selected, it triggers the escrow service provider’s (Payoneer) Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) procedures. Any time the dispute button is clicked, a pop-up window will be open to handle the dispute request. Both the law firm and contract lawyer will see a pop-up with an option to offer a settlement or respond to a settlement.
When the dispute is resolved, the funds will be distributed accordingly.
Step 3: Payment of the Remaining Balance for the Completed Assignment
Upon completion of the assignment, the contract lawyer will request payment for the remaining balance.
Following the payment request, the law firm may either:
Approve the work product by clicking on the "Mark Assignment as Completed" button. The law firm must then initiate a new transfer to the contract lawyer's account, through Payoneer’s system, for the balance. Payment in full must be made within 3 business days by the law firm. If payment is not transferred within 3 business days, K-Lawyers.com will attempt to secure payment from the law firm.
OR
Raise an issue with the completed work product by clicking the "Dispute Payment" button. When selected, it triggers the escrow service provider’s (Payoneer) Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) procedures. When the dispute button is clicked, a pop-up window will be open to handle the dispute request. Both the law firm and contract lawyer will see a pop-up with an option to offer a settlement or respond to a settlement.
** Our escrow service provider, Payoneer, is licensed and fully compliant with banking, financial, and governmental requirements in the USA. The online payment and Escrow system employs stringent security measures, ensuring your user data remains completely safe, secure and protected. It employs advanced fraud monitoring, both pre- and post-transaction that safeguards the activity in our marketplace against suspicious activity and fraudulent users on our platform.
For more information see Payoneer Escrow FAQs