These advantages have to be weighed against the cost of any plan and budget, which should be kept small in relation to the total cost of the work. Again, it is important not to micro-manage and to understand that a budget has to be flexible and changeable based on events and what the opposition does. Planning and budgeting should be used to make sure that you and counsel place the same value on the case and that cost-benefit analyses are made and discussed on all significant decisions before any action is taken. Everyone agrees it is important to assign tasks to lawyers who have the right level of experience. Junior lawyers should not be asked to do work that requires more experience than they possess.
Some clients only worry about the first rule.
Indeed, they welcome the assignment of as much work as possible to more junior associates, on the theory that the lower billing rates means lower fees. This view is sometimes shortsighted. If junior associates are asked to do work which is over their heads, they will be unable to handle the assignment properly. Much or all of the work may have to be redone, resulting in substantially greater expense to you. Similarly, the fees spent arguing an important motion will sometimes be reduced by sending a junior associate to handle, but the chances of winning may also be reduced.