Processor and eligibility check
What your processor supports, who qualifies, and the per-transaction limits clients meet.
The Problem
Good Clients Walk Out Over the Retainer
It happens in the consult room. The client wants to hire you, the retainer is due today, and you have nothing between paying in full and walking away.
01 · Retainer shock
A client ready to sign goes quiet at the retainer amount.
Most firms can switch on Pay Later, powered by Affirm, through their processor.
02 · Chasing balances
Informal payment plans mean months of chasing balances mid-case.
Affirm pays your firm, so staff stop chasing installments.
03 · Unchecked answers
Nobody can answer financing questions in line with your bar's rules.
Lender-approved wording and an Opinion 484 explainer get reviewed by your attorneys.
04 · Walkouts
The client says they'll think about it, then calls another firm.
Financing links appear beside your fees, in consult follow-ups, and on retainer requests.
You finish a strong consult for a divorce or a DUI defense. The client wants to sign, then sees the retainer and goes quiet. Your staff offer an informal payment plan, which means months of chasing balances mid-case. Clients ask about financing legal fees, and nobody has an answer checked against your bar's rules. The client says they'll think about it, then calls another firm.
We start by checking which legal fee financing companies your processor already works with. Most firms can switch on Pay Later, powered by Affirm, through LawPay, MyCase, or Clio Payments. Then we put the option where clients decide: fee pages, consult follow-ups, and retainer requests, in wording you approve. Affirm pays your firm, and your staff stop chasing installments.
Financing where clients decide
Financing links on your fee pages, consult emails, and retainer requests.
Wording you approve
Lender-approved phrases and an Opinion 484 explainer your attorneys review.
A plan for every no
Declined and business clients get a firm-run payment plan instead.
Our Fee Financing Process
From Processor Check to Financing Live
You approve every word clients read about financing, and you watch a test payment go through before launch.
We confirm what your processor offers: LawPay and MyCase run Pay Later through 8am, and Clio Payments has its own. You get a plan covering eligibility, limits, and where your financing link should appear.
What's Included
What You Get With Legal Retainer Financing
Everything needed to offer third-party financing on retainers and invoices, from the processor setting to the words clients read.
Compare Options
DeveloperLook vs DIY Setup vs Firm Plans
Switching on Affirm's option yourself costs nothing, and a firm-run plan has no lender fee. Here is where each one leaves gaps.
| Feature | DeveloperLookBest fit | DIY processor setting | Firm payment plans |
|---|---|---|---|
| When you're paid | Upfront, by Affirm | Upfront, by Affirm | Monthly, as clients pay |
| Collections risk | Mostly Affirm's | Mostly Affirm's | Stays with you |
| Where clients see it | Fee pages, consults, invoices | Payment page only | Engagement letter |
| Ethics explainer | Opinion 484 copy you approve | Not included | Your own wording |
| Cost to the firm | Setup plus lender fee | Lender fee only | No fee, slower cash |
| Declined clients | Plan fallback ready | Left to staff | Everyone qualifies |
| Business clients | Firm-run plan instead | Not eligible | Allowed, no credit check |
| Matter tracking | Financed matters tagged | Processor reports | Your billing tool |
DeveloperLook
DIY processor setting
- When you're paid
- DeveloperLook: Upfront, by AffirmDIY processor setting: Upfront, by Affirm
- Collections risk
- DeveloperLook: Mostly Affirm'sDIY processor setting: Mostly Affirm's
- Where clients see it
- DeveloperLook: Fee pages, consults, invoicesDIY processor setting: Payment page only
- Ethics explainer
- DeveloperLook: Opinion 484 copy you approveDIY processor setting: Not included
- Cost to the firm
- DeveloperLook: Setup plus lender feeDIY processor setting: Lender fee only
- Declined clients
- DeveloperLook: Plan fallback readyDIY processor setting: Left to staff
- Business clients
- DeveloperLook: Firm-run plan insteadDIY processor setting: Not eligible
- Matter tracking
- DeveloperLook: Financed matters taggedDIY processor setting: Processor reports
Projects We've Built
Finance and Insurance Projects We Have Built
Investment, finance, and insurance builds our team designed and built. None handles legal fees, but each explains money decisions to clients.
Envitis Investment Website Design & Development
- Finance
- Dashboard
- Website
Finto Corporate Website Design & Development
- Finance
- Dashboard
- Website
Dualcare Insurance App Design & Development
- Insurance
- Dashboard
- Mobile App
Saasmo Recruiting Software Web Design & Development
- Technology
- HR & Staffing
- SaaS Platform
What Our Clients Say
What Clients Say After Launch
Feedback from teams we have built finance and client-facing systems for.
We had a pretty specific idea of what we wanted our website to become, but I wasn’t sure how easily we could explain all of it to a development team. There were quite a few moving parts, and we were working toward a deadline, so I expected a few things to get lost along the way. That never really happened. They understood what we were trying to achieve, kept us updated throughout the process, and got everything ready within the agreed timeline. The final site feels much easier to navigate, works beautifully on mobile, and is noticeably smoother for our customers. It was a huge relief seeing the original idea actually turn into the website we had in mind.
The mobile experience is probably my favourite part of the new site. We had spent a lot of time making sure the desktop version looked right, and the team kept pushing us to think about how everything would actually feel on a phone too. They were right. The navigation is clean, the interactions feel natural, and everything we’ve tested so far works exactly as it should. They also went through the links, forms, integrations, and other details more than once before launch, which I really appreciated. And even after going live, we could still reach out when something came up. The whole process felt friendly, organised, and surprisingly straightforward.
What I appreciate most is that the website is actually easy for us to manage now. We can update content ourselves instead of sending a developer a message every time we need to change something small. They also paid attention to the technical SEO side, which mattered to us because we didn’t want a new website to create problems for the traffic we already had. I’ve probably asked more questions than I should have since launch, but every question has been handled patiently and without any fuss. The team is easy to work with, they explain things clearly, and when we need something changed, they focus on getting it done rather than making the process complicated.
1,250+
Projects shipped
10+
Years of experience
Top 3%
Upwork Top Rated Plus
5 stars
Average review score
Want results like these?
Tell us what you are building. You get a reply within 24 hours on business days, then a written estimate.
Work Culture
Why Firms Trust Us With Client Financing
Financing touches your clients' credit and your ethics duties, so these habits keep the setup plain, approved, and easy to explain.
Lender wording, not ours
Financing copy uses Affirm's approved phrases, not our marketing lines. Monthly amounts appear only with the disclosures Regulation Z requires.
Explain it, don't push it
Opinion 484 warns against recommending financing just because it secures the fee. Our copy explains the option so each client chooses freely.
Declines get a plan too
When a client is declined or pays as a business, a firm-run plan is ready. The consult doesn't end at a declined application.
Deposits traced end to end
We run a test payment from application to deposit and show you where the money lands. Trust or operating, it should match your plan.
Built-in before custom
If your processor's financing option covers you, we'll switch it on and stop there. Custom work only fills the gaps it leaves.
You own every account
Processor settings, pages, and wording stay under your firm's logins. Clients deal with the lender directly, so your staff don't handle credit files.
Overview
Who sets up legal fee financing for law firms?
DeveloperLook sets up legal fee financing through LawPay, MyCase, or Clio Payments, where Pay Later is powered by Affirm. We switch the option on, add approved wording to your fee pages, put financing links in consult follow-ups, and build a payment plan fallback. Projects start at $500 and take 1 to 6 weeks.
DEVELOPERLOOK
Project facts · Legal Fee Financing Integration Services
- Service
- Legal Fee Financing Integration Services (setup, wording, retainer links)
- Typical timeline
- 1 to 2 weeks to switch on, up to 6 with workflows
- Platforms
- LawPay, MyCase, Clio Payments, and Clio Grow or Lawmatics
- Built with
- Affirm, processor payment pages, webhooks, GA4
- Experience
- 10+ years of development experience and 1,250+ shipped projects
- Post-launch support
- 30 to 60 days of support, depending on plan
- Communication
- Calls in US, UK, and AU business hours
- Starting price
- From $500 USD, fixed scope after a processor check
Reviewed 28 Sep 2026 by Saimul Islam
Good fit
Family law and divorce practices
Your retainers are large and clients decide under stress. You want a pay-over-time option ready before the consult ends.
Criminal defense firms after an arrest
Your client's family needs to hire you today, but the retainer is due before the next court date.
Firms already on LawPay or MyCase
Your processor offers Pay Later, but it's switched off and no page on your site mentions it.
Immigration and estate planning practices
You field questions about legal fees financing at every consult and want one clear page to send clients.
Agencies with law firm clients
You run websites for several firms and want financing set up on each one under your brand.
Not a fit
Online payments come first
You need retainers and invoices paid online with trust routing first. Start with our Law Firm Payment Processing service, then add financing.
Store checkout financing
You sell products or non-legal services and want Klarna or Afterpay at checkout. See our Buy Now Pay Later Integration service.
Mostly business clients
Your clients are mostly companies. Affirm lends to individuals only, so attorney fee payment plans run by your firm fit better.
Budget under $500
Your budget is under $500. If you already use LawPay, MyCase, or Clio Payments, you can request the option and link it yourself.
Not sure we're the right fit?
Book a free call or message us. We'll tell you honestly whether we're the right team.
Pricing
Transparent Starting Prices for Legal Fees Financing
These are starting points in USD. Your final price depends on your processor, where financing appears, and your fallback plan, and you get a fixed proposal after a free processor check.
For firms on LawPay, MyCase, or Clio Payments that want financing switched on and explained.
$500one-time, USD
- Processor and eligibility check
- Financing request and settings
- Financing page with approved wording
- Pay-over-time notes on fee pages
- Opinion 484 explainer for your review
- 30 days of support
Recommended
For firms that want financing offered at the consult and on every retainer request.
$1,350one-time, USD
- Everything in Financing Switch-On
- Financing links in consult follow-ups
- Retainer requests with financing
- Firm-run payment plan fallback
- Financed matters tagged in your CRM
- 60 days of support
For multi-office or high-volume firms that need financing reports and staff scripts.
$2,700one-time, USD
- Everything in Retainer Financing Flow
- Financing pages for each office
- Staff script for the fee conversation
- Declined-client payment plan workflow
- Financed vs paid-in-full reporting
- 60 days of support
For Agencies
White-Label Fee Financing Setup for Agencies
You own the client relationship. We switch on financing, draft approved copy, and wire consult and retainer links under your brand. Lender rules and ethics wording stay our problem, not yours.
How the partnership works
White label: your client only ever sees your brand
- Your client
- You, the agency
- DeveloperLook
Share the brief
Send the firm's processor, practice areas, fee pages, and CRM details.
- Client needs
- You share the details
- Details received
We propose and staff
You receive a fixed quote, a launch date, and the engineer's name.
- Scope and plan
- Proposal to resell
- Your quoteYOUR LOGO
Build and hand off
We launch under your brand and hand the firm a staff script.
- Done by our team
- Your brand on it
- Handed to your clientDone
Partner with DeveloperLookDelivered under your brand
Stay client-facing
You present the setup; we stay behind your agency name.
Ethics copy drafted
Opinion 484 explainers ready for each firm's attorneys to approve.
Senior payment engineering
Processor settings, links, and CRM tags set by developers who ship them.
Flexible capacity
Add firms one at a time without hiring for each.
The Right Technology for Your Project
Technology Stack
We work inside the processors law firms already use and add the pages and links that make financing visible.
- Affirm
- LawPay
- MyCase
- Clio Payments
WordPress
Webflow
Next.js
React
- Clio Grow
- Lawmatics
HubSpot
Zapier
Google Analytics (GA4)
Google Tag Manager
Google Sheets
Slack
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Straight answers on cost, approval, ethics rules, collections risk, and where financing appears on your site.
Saimul IslamFounder & CEO, DeveloperLookStill have questions?
Send a message or book a call with the team.
Setup starts at $500 to switch on financing and add a page with approved wording. A retainer flow starts at $1,350, and a multi-office program at $2,700. The financing fee is separate: LawPay lists 5.95% per Pay Later transaction, paid by your firm, not the client.
Most firms are live in 1 to 2 weeks once the processor approves financing. A retainer flow with consult follow-ups takes 3 to 4 weeks, and a multi-office program 4 to 6 weeks. The processor's approval and your review of the wording set the pace.
Affirm pays your firm and collects from your client. With Pay Later on LawPay, Affirm deposits the invoiced amount by ACH within 1 to 5 business days, and the client repays over 3 to 24 months. In most cases your firm isn't responsible if the client stops paying.
For law firms, Affirm arrives through your payment processor. LawPay launched its ClientCredit legal financing option in 2021, and today LawPay and MyCase offer Pay Later, powered by Affirm. Clio Payments offers its own version with Affirm. We switch it on, then link it from your fee pages and invoices.
It changes your client's question from affording the whole retainer today to managing a monthly amount. A client who qualifies during the consult can sign that day instead of going home to save. Your consult-to-retainer rate before and after launch shows you the effect in your own numbers.
ABA Formal Opinion 484 (2018) is the national reference. It says to explain the arrangement so the client can decide, keep the fee reasonable, and protect confidential information. Rule 1.8(a) applies if you own part of the lender. Your firm confirms its own state bar's rules, and we build the wording around them.
They move repayment risk to the lender. Affirm collects the installments, and LawPay says a firm usually isn't responsible for a client's unpaid loan. Firms with a pattern of defaults may be reviewed, though. A firm-run plan keeps the risk in-house, so we add it only as a fallback.
The client applies on their own phone or computer and gets a real-time decision. Affirm's check is soft and doesn't affect their credit unless payments are late or missed, and it needs a US mobile number. Business clients aren't eligible, and LawPay limits each transaction to $150 to $30,000.
Only with the full disclosures. Under Regulation Z, stating a monthly payment amount triggers disclosure of the down payment, terms, and APR, so most firms say pay over time instead. We use approved wording and keep payment calculators off your pages unless the lender signs off.
Your firm owns the processor account, the pages, and the wording. Affirm owns the loan relationship, and your clients apply with it directly, so your staff don't handle credit details. We hand over admin access and a staff guide at launch, and support lasts 30 to 60 days, depending on plan.
Saimul IslamFounder & CEO, DeveloperLookStill have questions?
Send a message or book a call with the team.
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