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Fees, Retainers and Charges for Case Review

The issue of attorneys fees can be a difficult one for a number of reasons. Attorneys fees are, in general, expensive and, usually, not an expense that is pre-planned. Beyond that, attorneys may not always do a great job of explaining how fees are expected to be handled.

No Charge for Initial Consultation

Generally speaking, we do not charge for an initial consultation, which may be in person or over the phone. The simple reason is that, at that stage, we do not know whether we could accept employment and you, as the client, do not know whether you will retain us. At the very least, a potential client has more information after the consultation. More information is a very good thing when a client is dealing with challenges of family issues in court.

Retainers and How They Work

Payment for our services is due when the bill is presented –fairly typical of a professional or other service provider. We always estimate the potential fees for a case. Sometimes the estimate is right on the mark. Sometimes the fees are less because the level of conflict or complexity of the dispute is less. Sometimes the fees are more because the level of conflict or complexity of the dispute is greater.

A retainer is an upfront payment which goes into our trust account. A retainer operates as an advance payment against which we bill every month. Each month we submit a bill to you, drawing that monthly payment from the retainer.

Each time we accept employment and each time we are paid a retainer, we enter into an engagement agreement with our client. This is a sample engagement agreement.

Case Review or Other Limited Engagement

Many clients are understandably dismayed at the prospects of funding a retainer when they really don’t know what their case will involve, how far will it have to go and whether an amicable resolution by the parties might lower the cost. This is sound thinking because it is always true that a fair, amicable resolution costs less (both emotionally and financially). Accordingly, we do case reviews which, essentially, involve an assessment of the client’s case. The case review fee would be hourly or a fixed fee. For example, a contested child custody dispute in which the parties have assets to divide might involve a case review fee of $500 or so, whereas a retainer would be substantially higher than that amount.

In the event that we do the case review and the client then hires us, the money spent on the case review is a sound investment because we are then familiar with the case. On the other hand, if attorneys are not hired and, for example, the parties instead decide to go to a mediator, then the case review would have given the client information necessary to a successful mediation (since knowing all of your rights is critical to a successful conclusion, whether in court or mediation).