Known as “The Father of Unbundling,” Woody Mosten has been credited with inventing this concept for delivering discrete task legal services, click here. In a 1993 keynote address in Australia, Woody introduced the concept of unbundled legal services. Following that presentation, Woody has written many articles and two books, click here.
Woody has led this movement in increasing legal access and family law reform by serving as a featured speaker on unbundling in programs throughout the United States and the world and has trained lawyers and consulted with bar associations, law societies and other organizations throughout the world.
Unbundling has become so important, that it has become a criterion for successful client interviewing for law students worldwide in the International Client Consultation Competition, click on www.brownmosten.com.
Legal Scholar, Professor John Lande discussed unbundled legal services and Woody’s ABA book in his blog post on December 24, 2017.
Professor Julie Macfarlane, a world leader in research on self-represented litigants and author of The New Lawyer, 2nd Edition (2017), conducted a Podcast with Woody in February 2018
For Woody’s newest ABA book on legal coaching which Professor McFarlane has reviewed, click here
Hear a podcast about the practice of unbundled legal services, read the transcript, and obtain resources from interview with David Aarons of www.unbundledattorney.com
“Lawyers who understand the unmistakable message of consumers demanding mediation are adapting the organization and physical setting of their office to make them more client-friendly.”
Forrest S. Mosten
The Complete Guide to Mediation (ABA, 1997)
“‘The client gets to pick a chevy instead of choosing between a cadillac and riding the bus,' says Forrest S. Mosten who pioneered unbundling legal services in the 1980's”
Business Week Jan. 31, 2000
“Forrest Mosten, a national leader in developing this limited-service practice approach, identifies three forms it can take:
- providing legal advice to pro se litigants;
- advising clients who are participating in mediation; and
- conducting regular preventive law or legal wellness checkups.”
Professor Michael Milleman
“Limited-Service Representation and Access to Justice:
An Experiment“, American Journal of Family Law, Spring 1997
Illustrations of unbundled, discrete task legal services offered at the Law and Mediation Offices of Forrest S. Mosten include:
- Advice: If you want advice only, it can be purchased at an initial Consultation or throughout the case as determined by you with the input from one of our attorneys. We collaborate with you in helping you decide if and when further consultations may be needed.
- Research: If you want legal research, a personal or telephonic unbundled service provides this legal information. Research may take 15 minutes or 10 hours. You are in charge of determining the scope of the job and who will do the work—you or our attorney or a negotiated collaborative effort between us.
- Drafting: We can ghostwrite letters and and court pleadings for you to transmit, or just review and comment on what you have prepared.
- Negotiation: Our lawyers teach you how to negotiate with opposing parties, court clerks and governmental agencies.
- Court Appearances: If you desire, we can coach you or can convert to full representation as the attorney of record in court appearances or continue coaching pro se litigants how to do it on your own.
- Representing You in Mediation: We can prepare you for mediation, monitor progress, or we can even attend mediation sessions to offer advice and emotional support.
- Legal Wellness Preventive Check-Ups to Diagnose Client Legal Health: You are in charge whether to live with legal disease or find a cure.
“One of the very first lawyers to try unbundling, Forrest S. Mosten, offers family-law clients a checklist of 16 services from which to choose, including factual investigation, discovery and advice on court appearances. Once they agree which tasks Mosten will handle and which the client will perform, they meet as necessary to complete the case.”
“Unbundling Your Services Makes Some Clients Happy”
Lawyers Weekly USA, December 18, 1995
