A fee earner is a professional in a services business (typically law, accounting, consulting, or financial planning) whose time generates billable revenue. Fee earner retention is the single most important valuation factor in Australian professional services M&A, because the practice’s revenue depends almost entirely on the continued presence of the fee earners and their relationships with clients.
Acquirers of Australian professional services businesses typically require key fee earners to enter into post-completion employment agreements with retention bonuses and restraints, and may structure substantial portions of the consideration as earnouts contingent on fee earner retention.