The Billable Hour: How Lawyers Learned to Sell Time—And Why They're Stopping

In 1858, Abraham Lincoln returned half a client's fee because the work didn't warrant it. That gesture of professional integrity launched a question we're still answering: what is legal work actually worth?

This episode journeys from Lincoln's Springfield office through the rise of BigLaw, the ABA's 1958 efficiency revolution, and the billable hour's reign over modern practice. But the story doesn't end there. We explore how AI, alternative fee arrangements, and a new generation of lawyers are finally breaking free from the six-minute increment—returning to something Lincoln would recognize: billing for value, not just time.

The past taught lawyers to measure everything. The present is teaching them what actually matters. And the future? It looks a lot like lawyers getting back to what they do best: solving problems, not watching clocks.