Fee Splits
When you work with co-counsel, the professional arrangement matters — and in most states, how you split fees is regulated by your jurisdiction's version of M…
When you work with co-counsel, the professional arrangement matters — and in most states, how you split fees is regulated by your jurisdiction's version of Model Rule of Professional Conduct 1.5(e). Guild makes recording a compliant fee split straightforward by building the consent requirements straight into the form.
When you record a fee split
Fee splits are recorded per match (on the match detail page) — that's the normal co-counsel case. They can also be recorded for a bid (on the bid detail page) when the split is part of a group bid.
The form asks you to specify, for each participant:
- Percentage — what share of the fee each lawyer receives.
- Scope of work — what each lawyer is actually doing for that share.
The consent triple-gate
The form won't let you save until all three of these are satisfied:
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The numbers add up. All percentages must sum to exactly 100%, and every participant must have a scope of work. (At least two participants — a split with one lawyer is not a split.)
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Client consent is on record. You must certify — by checking the box and entering the date — that:
the client has been informed of and agreed to this fee-sharing arrangement in writing, including the share each lawyer will receive, as required by MRPC 1.5(e).
That's the full MRPC 1.5(e) consent requirement, verbatim. The date of the client's consent is stored with the split.
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The total fee is reasonable. You must certify that the total fee is reasonable under MRPC 1.5(a).
Nothing saves until all three gates pass. The form shows you the running total so you can see where you stand as you type.
After you save
A saved fee split is immutable — there's no edit or delete path. If circumstances change and the split needs to change, that's handled by recording the amended arrangement as a new agreement (the existing one stays on record). This matches the spec's design: consent-based agreements shouldn't be silently edited after the fact.
What's stored
The agreement is a structured record in the database — the per-lawyer splits (percentage + scope), the two certifications, and the consent date. No PDF is generated in the MVP; the structured record is the agreement. (PDF generation from the stored JSON is a documented v2 possibility.)
A word on professional judgment
Guild's form implements the mechanics of the rule — but you remain responsible for the substance: that the client actually consented in writing, that the split reflects the work and responsibility assumed, and that the total fee is reasonable in your jurisdiction's view of the rule. The platform records what you certify; it doesn't (and can't) certify it for you.
Next: Referrals & Bids — the other ways cases and work move.