EXPERIENCED. ENGAGED. EFFICIENT.

OUR VALUES

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are more than just values at Massey & Gail — they are a source of our strength. During the past several years, three-quarters of our full-time attorney hires have been diverse. We believe that developing and maintaining diverse talent is fundamental to our success as a law firm. It allows our professionals to achieve their full potential and is essential to delivering high-quality legal services to our clients.

Our pursuit of diversity and inclusion extends to attorney recruiting, professional development, and promotion. We actively recruit female, minority, and LGBTQ+ lawyers. We are a member of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association — an organization committed to advancing the hiring, retention, and promotion of diverse lawyers in law departments and law firms through pipeline initiatives and by providing research, best practices, professional development, and training. One of our partners was a 2016 Leadership Council on Legal Diversity Fellow and remains involved in mentorship and advocacy with the organization. Please reach out to one of our DEI committee members: Kate BjorklundJonathan Massey, Jeremy Mallory, Anne Swift, or Laura Zenzerovich with any questions.

At Massey & Gail, we are passionate about building communities and believe we have a duty to give back and to support those who are financially unable to access counsel for their legal needs.  Our lawyers frequently take on community-impacting pro bono projects, represent indigent litigants in civil rights lawsuits, and serve on boards of community-based non-profits.  For example, because of the deep background of many of our attorneys in competitive debate, our firm is a longtime sponsor of a nationwide charity that promotes competitive academic debate in inner-city and financially underserved schools. This charity not only improves educational outcomes for students, but also helps diversify the legal profession, because many successful debaters enter law school after college.

In addition, we have an active pro bono practice that has included representing criminal defendants in Chicago and the Fifth Circuit, homeless veterans in Los Angeles, prison inmates in Alabama and Illinois, a low-income high school in Chicago, and educational and art non-profits.  Members of the firm are frequent pro bono volunteers, as well as instructors at Harvard Law School, the University of Maryland, the D.C. Bar Association, and other institutions. Our partners serve on charity boards including the National Advisory Council of the School of Communication at Northwestern University, Planned Parenthood of Illinois, Chicago Run, Chicago Debates, the Chicago chapter of the American Constitution Society, and boards for a public school district and a private school.

FEE STRUCTURES

At Massey & Gail, our fee structures span the full spectrum of financial possibilities — from pure hourly arrangements to matters for which our fees are completely contingent. Hourly charges are often the most appropriate, and we think that clients receive an exceptional value proposition given how we efficiently staff and manage matters. But we also know that non-hourly structures can be sensible for the right type of case. Unlike some firms that dabble on the margins, we have considerable experience and comfort with non-hourly arrangements. As a result, we also understand how to gauge and bear the risks.

We custom-tailor our engagements after carefully evaluating the nature, magnitude, and exposures of each individual matter. Many clients seek to manage their litigation budgets with greater certainty. Our flexible approach allows us to offer predictability that hourly billing cannot provide. Please reach out to discuss the varied, creative arrangements we employ.