Boots-on-the-Ground Legal Backup for Virginia Contractors.
Stop letting legal uncertainty slow down your business.
We know your job site isn't a boardroom, and neither are we. We offer practical, down-to-earth legal advice and don't mind getting our boots dusty to meet you on-site. Get the protection of a dedicated attorney with 100% transparent pricing: predictable flat monthly rates for your everyday compliance and contracts, and clear, upfront hourly billing for complex custom drafting or litigation.
Real Legal Backup Without the "Billable Hour" Anxiety.
Most contractors avoid calling an attorney for one simple reason: they know a “quick phone call” usually means waiting a week or more to finally speak with an attorney and getting a $500 invoice for the call. To save money and time, tradesmen try to handle the paperwork themselves. They sign risky vendor contracts, eat the cost of unpaid invoices, and fight with General Contractors on their own. By the time they finally call a lawyer, a minor dispute has turned into a massive, expensive crisis, and they’re facing a court date.
Are you losing money to...
Upstream Cash Flow Freezes: General Contractors, Developers, and Homeowners withholding payment on a technicality or ignoring your invoices?
Missed Deadlines: Blowing the strict 90-day window to file a Virginia Mechanic’s Lien?
Toxic Contracts: Signing "pay-if-paid" subcontractor agreements that leave you holding the bag?
Regulatory Blind spots: Risking DPOR license suspension over missed SCC registration fees?
Our Contractor Legal Plans flip the traditional law firm model on its head.
Instead of paying a lawyer to put out a fire after it starts, you get proactive, preventative legal protection for a predictable flat monthly rate.
*For complex litigation or custom drafting outside the scope of your plan, we provide clear, upfront hourly billing so there are never any surprises.
What Your Monthly Plan Actually Does:
Job-Site "Sanity Checks": Get rapid priority access for operational questions without the billable clock running for a simple 10-minute check. When a GC changes the rules mid-job or an owner pushes back on scope, reach out directly from the truck instead of waiting weeks for an appointment.
Pre-Execution Contract Reviews (Read & Flag Only): Send over commercial subcontracts or prime contracts before you sign. We review the agreement and issue an Attorney Risk Memo spotting dangerous "pay-if-paid" clauses, liquidated damages, and indemnity traps. (Revisions, custom redlining, and addenda drafting are quoted separately at clear upfront flat fees.)
The 60-Day Unpaid Invoice Protocol: When an account hits 60 days past due, alert our office immediately. You jump to the front of our enforcement docket for formal Attorney Demand Letters and Virginia Mechanics' Lien filings before your statutory rights expire.
Compliance Reminders: We track your annual Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) and DPOR renewal deadlines, giving you advance courtesy reminders so administrative entity lapses never threaten your business license.
Waived Onboarding Fee: We credit your $300 Initial Strategy Session directly toward your first monthly invoice, completely waiving our standard $500 Business Onboarding & Compliance Audit.
Contractor Legal Plans: Fixed-Rate Protection
Choose the level of legal services your company needs. All plans are billed as a flat monthly retainer to secure our ongoing availability, exclusive access to our legal team, priority scheduling, and compliance tracking systems.
Tier 1: Class C - Core Protection — $300 / Month
Designed for specialty trade subcontractors, solo tradesmen, and specialty contractors wanting direct attorney access before signing risky agreements.
On-Demand Job-Site "Sanity Checks": Up to two (2) priority inquiries per month (up to 10 minutes each) directly with Attorney Nichols for quick operational gut-checks before signing change orders or accepting job-site directives.
Quarterly Subcontract Review (Read & Flag Only): Review of one (1) trade subcontract, supplier agreement, or commercial work order per calendar quarter (up to 10 pages). You receive an Attorney Risk Memo spotting dangerous clauses, such as pay-if-paid terms, broad indemnification, or hidden lien waivers. (Note: Review and risk assessment only; custom redlining, revisions, and negotiations are billed separately.)
SCC Deadline Monitoring: Annual monitoring and timely courtesy notifications for your Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) annual registration renewals to prevent administrative entity lapses.
60-Day Unpaid Invoice Priority Access: Fast-track access to our formal collection and mechanics' lien enforcement pipeline the moment an invoice hits 60 days past due.
Transparent Flat-Rate Add-Ons: Need a custom contract reviewed, a subcontractor agreement drafted, or a mechanic’s lien filed? We will send you a clear, flat-rate quote before any work begins so you stay in total control of your legal budget.
Tier 2: Class B - Builder’s Counsel — $500 / Month
(Most Popular) Designed for active Class B & growing commercial subcontractors managing multi-crew job sites, frequent change orders, and high-volume vendor contracts.
Priority Advisory Access: Up to three (3) direct inquiries per month (up to 10 minutes each) with calendar priority for scheduled phone calls on payment disputes, scope changes, or contract terms.
Monthly Contract Review (Read & Flag Only): Review of one (1) commercial subcontract, prime contract, or vendor agreement per month (up to 10 pages). We review the text and deliver an Attorney Issue Checklist identifying payment traps, liquidated damage liabilities, and dispute resolution risks before you sign. (Note: Review and risk assessment only; custom drafting or redlines are quoted at upfront flat fees.)
SCC & DPOR Renewal Tracking: Full monitoring and deadline tracking for your Virginia SCC filings and DPOR contractor trade licenses so your license never lapses accidentally.
The 60-Day Collection Pipeline: When an account reaches 60 days unpaid, jump straight to the front of our drafting docket for formal Attorney Demand Letters ($500 flat fee) and Virginia Mechanics' Liens ($1,250 flat fee + court costs).
10% Flat-Fee Drafting Discount: Receive a 10% discount on out-of-scope transactional drafting (custom subcontract riders, master agreements, and corporate resolutions). (Litigation excluded.)
Tier 3: Class A - General Counsel — $1,000 / Month
Built for high-revenue Class A General Contractors and multi-crew commercial builders navigating heavy contract volumes, commercial project agreements, and multi-tier project administration.
First-Priority Dedicated Access: Direct priority routing with a 1-business-day response turnaround for urgent job-site disputes and operational inquiries (up to five 10-minute inquiries per month).
Expanded Leadership Access: Authorize up to two (2) designated Project Managers or key executive officers to consult directly with our office for fast job-site operational checks, keeping your jobs moving without delay.
Monthly Complex Contract Audit (Read & Flag Only): Comprehensive review of one (1) complex commercial agreement per month (up to 20 pages; prime contracts, commercial leases, master subcontracts, or AIA forms). Attorney Nichols conducts an in-depth risk analysis identifying statutory pitfalls, indemnification exposure, and conflicting general conditions. (Note: Review and risk analysis only; direct negotiation or redlining is billed at standard rates.)
Annual Corporate Veil & Asset Shield Audit: A yearly strategic deep-dive into your corporate governance, operating agreements, entity standing, and internal records to ensure your personal assets and real estate remain completely shielded from business and job-site liabilities.
The 60-Day Collection Pipeline: When an account reaches 60 days unpaid, you receive priority scheduling on our drafting docket for formal Attorney Demand Letters ($500 flat fee) and Virginia Mechanics' Liens ($1,250 flat fee + court costs).
10% Flat-Fee Drafting Discount: Receive a 10% discount on out-of-scope transactional drafting and corporate document preparation. (Litigation excluded.)
Virginia State Bar Compliance & Fee Disclosures
Nature of Monthly Retainer Fee: Monthly subscription tiers are structured as periodic fixed-fee business counsel service plans billed on the first (1st) day of each calendar month. The recurring fee compensates the firm for maintaining ongoing attorney availability, conflict screening, priority scheduling, corporate deadline reminders, and designated monthly consultation and contract review allowances for that billing period. Fees are deemed earned upon the provision of these ongoing business counsel and advisory services during each monthly billing cycle.
Review-Only Scope: All contract review allowances include reading, analysis, and issue-spotting advice only. Contract allowances do not include redlining, drafting strike-through revisions, preparing custom riders/addenda, or direct third-party negotiations. All drafting and revisions are quoted separately at clear, upfront flat rates or standard hourly billing.
Litigation & Court Proceedings Excluded: Contested courtroom proceedings, arbitrations, administrative hearings (including DPOR and SCC enforcement proceedings), and litigation of any nature are strictly excluded from monthly retainer packages and are billed at our standard hourly rates (Managing Attorney: $350/hr; Associate Attorney: $250/hr). Retainer discounts do not apply to hourly litigation.
No Job-Site or Lien Deadline Tracking: The Law Office of Katherine A. Nichols, PLLC does not maintain or track client project schedules, work completion dates, delivery receipts, or statutory mechanics' lien filing clocks. The client remains solely responsible for monitoring payment timelines and notifying the firm in writing with sufficient advance notice (and no later than sixty (60) days after the last day labor or materials were provided) if the client requests legal enforcement or lien action.
Registered Agent Disclaimer: The firm does not serve as client’s Registered Agent, nor does the firm accept service of process on behalf of retainer clients. State filing fees, DPOR licensing fees, and Circuit Court recording costs are not included in monthly retainers and are billed directly at cost.
How It Works (3 Simple Steps)
Book Your $300 Initial Strategy Session: Just like you scope a job before swinging a hammer, we assess your business first before making a recommendation. We will discuss your current unpaid invoices, GC headaches, and operational risks to determine your legal game plan. (Note: This is a diagnostic strategy session, not a working session for document drafting or contract review).
Select Your Plan & Waive Your Setup Fee: Choose the flat-rate tier that matches your business volume. We automatically apply your initial $300 session fee to completely waive your $500 Initial Business Onboarding Audit, meaning your first invoice is strictly your flat monthly rate.
Get Back to the Job Site: Once onboarded, you receive a dedicated private client email address, the fastest, most direct way to reach our legal team. Shoot us a message from the truck for a "sanity check" or to send over a subcontractor agreement for review. Priority calendar scheduling depends on your plan; all plans get priority over new inquiries, and Tier 3 members get first-priority booking. If you need custom drafting or litigation outside your monthly scope, we will review the request and send a transparent invoice so we can get you on our calendar and start work ASAP.
