When it comes to divorce, everyone seems to know an individual that has gotten a divorce. Although divorce is a common matter, everyone is also aware that divorce is also an expensive matter.
The divorce process is often a complicated matter, but the process does not always have to be an extremely expensive matter. As such, it is important to understand the costs associated with divorce, so that way you may better avoid unexpected costs. One thing that you never want to encounter is a surprise bill that you are unprepared for, and even worse, unable to pay for.
The following article explores costs associated with the divorce process, including ways in which you can avoid hidden costs or unexpected surprise bills from an attorney.
How Do Law Firms Charge or Overcharge for Divorce?
When an attorney is retained in a divorce case, that attorney’s fees will generally be calculated based on their hourly rate combined with the hourly rate of any support staff utilized during the divorce case.
It is important to note that depending on a lawyer’s experience and location, an attorney’s hourly rate can vary considerably. It is important to note that an attorney’s fee structure will be outlined in the fee agreement that is executed between the attorney and the client.
An attorney fee agreement is a written contract, which may or may not include a stated retainer fee, that is needed to secure an attorney’s services. Fee agreements are important as they provide legal proof of a contract between the attorney and client. A well-written attorney-client fee agreement will contain certain information, including:
- The total amount of any initial retainer payment that may need to be made before the attorney begins legal services
- A clause as to whether or not the retainer is refundable or immediately collected in full
- The attorney’s billable rate, along with the support staff’s billable rate
- Hourly billing is the most common pay structure for divorce cases
- Many attorneys will often use support staff such as law clerks, paralegals, or even associate attorneys to reduce their hourly fees for the daily tasks involved in managing a divorce case, their hourly fee will also be noted
- A description of the legal services that the attorney is being retained to perform
- For example, a fee agreement for a divorce case will often specify that the attorney is accepting the client and will render services involved with their divorce case, including pre-trial hearings, negotiations with the other side, document drafting, etc.
- The contact information for all the parties to the contract, including the attorney, support staff, and the client
- The fee structure for any other items outside the attorney’s hourly rate, such as fees for filing costs, copies, long distance phone charges, mail expenses, meal expenses, travel expenses, etc.
As can be seen, it is important that you thoroughly understand any fee agreement prior to entering into a service contract with an attorney. A properly drafted fee agreement will be able to ensure that there are no surprises when it comes to how an attorney bills.
For instance, a well drafted fee agreement will also outline how the client will receive billing statements, such as weekly, monthly, through an online portal, etc. Nowadays, it is common for a client to have access to a portal where they can track their attorney’s work on their case and the fees as they are being accumulated.
Because an attorney’s fee structure is generally based on their hourly fees, one way in which a client may feel that they have been overcharged, or be surprised with a bill, is when an attorney fails to communicate or properly track the work they have performed on their client’s case.
In other words, one way in which law firms overcharge their clients is improperly tracking their time when working on their client’s case. For example, suppose an attorney is drafting documents on one client’s case, but then gets pulled away from drafting by a colleague, and then later returns to drafting the documents.
In that instance, the attorney should not be billing for the time they were away from the case. In practice, these situations occur often, and the client is the ultimate party that has to foot the bill.
As such, the client and attorney should always discuss how and when billing on the case will be communicated, as well as the process for handling disputes when it comes to billing. If all of these issues are addressed upfront, there will be less complications and surprise bills during the divorce process.
What Are Other Hidden Costs of Divorce?
Unethical billing by an attorney is definitely one way in which a client may be overcharged. However, there are many other fees that are associated with the divorce process, and these fees will ultimately impact the bill that is passed on to the client.
In many cases, a family law court may require other costs, such as both parents completing a parenting class prior to ruling on custody, the appointment of an attorney ad litem, or even court ordered mediation. All of these court ordered costs will be passed along to the client.
Similar to a client’s attorney, an attorney ad litem or mediator will also have their own fee structures, which the client will be responsible for paying. As such, it is important to also discuss their fee structures in order to avoid surprise bills.
Further, if there is real estate involved in the divorce case, an attorney may have to consult real estate experts or draft additional documents transferring the real property. For instance, the attorney may have to record deeds or other property documents, and then file those documents with the appropriate office after the final order of the court. This also results in additional costs for a client.
How Can I Avoid Unexpected Costs?
One of the best ways to avoid unexpected costs is to simplify the divorce process. The best way of achieving that is to attempt to proceed in the divorce process uncontested. When the parties to a divorce cannot agree on all of the issues that must be addressed in a divorce, the divorce will ultimately cost more.
The term “contested divorce” is the term that is used to refer when one or both spouses do not agree about how to resolve all of the issues that arise during the divorce process. Examples of the most common issues that lead to disagreement between divorcing spouses include:
When the two parties to a divorce are unable to agree on any of the above issues, the court must ultimately step in to determine the issues. This means a trial of the issues that they disagree upon must occur. This in turn costs time and money.
However, when the two parties agree on all of the above issues, the divorce will be considered uncontested. In other words, if you and your spouse get along and are able to agree on the issues that need to be addressed in a divorce case, then the divorce process will be much less expensive.
Further, when it comes to uncontested divorce cases, an attorney’s fee structure will commonly be a flat fee structure. A flat fee structure involves an attorney charging one set price to draft the documents necessary to finalize the divorce and represent one party in presenting the agreed upon documents to the court for finalization. Flat fee attorney price structures will almost always result in less costs and billing disagreements between client and attorney.
What Are My Legal Rights with Regard to Billing?
It is important to note that during a divorce case, you have a legal right to be kept informed about billing and legal expenses related to your representation. In general, there will be state laws regarding attorneys’ obligations to their clients.
Clients will generally always have the right to receive regular updates from their lawyer regarding billing, fees, and case expenses. These billing updates should come in the form of itemized invoices that detail the work performed, hours spent, and associated costs on the case. Then, if you’re unsure about any charges, you may ask for clarification.
In addition to billing, one of the main ways in which clients are surprised by bills is a lack of communication on their case. In other words, an attorney that does not keep their client informed of their case will likely end up with billing issues and disputes with their client. As such, it is important that both parties maintain open communication with one another.
Finally, lawyers are bound by ethical rules to keep their clients informed about case developments, including financial matters. As such, if you feel your lawyer isn’t providing adequate updates, and they will not communicate with you, then you may consider reaching out to the state bar for assistance.
Do I Need an Attorney for Help with Divorce Costs?
As can be seen, costs in a divorce case can rise quickly, and attorney’s fees are clearly a large portion of those costs. As such, if you are having any issues related to divorce costs, then your best method of resolving those issues will be to first contact the attorney and the office handling your case.
It is always in your best interests to consult with and be represented by an experienced divorce lawyer in divorce matters. However, if you believe that your attorney is not keeping you properly informed, or may be overcharging you, you may consider reaching out to the state bar in charge of handling attorney disputes.
LegalMatch can assist you in setting up a consultation with a family law lawyer in your area that will keep you well informed regarding their work on your case and billing. An experienced attorney will be able to help you reduce your costs in the long run by helping you navigate the more complicated procedures of the divorce process.
Further, an attorney can also even review an agreement that you entered into with another attorney to see if you are being overcharged. If you believe that you are being overcharged, you have every right to fire that attorney and allow another more ethical attorney to represent you moving forward.
