Understanding Your Contract With Your Attorney
The main purpose of an attorney-client agreement is to outline the relationship between you (the client) and the attorney – primarily, how the client will be billed for what services.
In general, billing can occur in a number of ways – hourly, contingent, flat fee or a mix of these methods. Flat fees are obviously the easiest to interpret since you’ll know up front what most of your costs will be. Flat fees are typically found in uncontested divorce cases where the attorney can clearly define what tasks and services he or she will perform.
Contingent implies that charges or fees will be billed only under certain circumstances or when a particular event occurs. For example, the attorney-client retainer could state that 10% of your settlement will be due and payable to the firm. If there’s no settlement in your favor, there would be no 10% to pay. For the most part, contingent billing is considered to be unethical in divorce cases but are often seen in alimony cases or matters concerning unpaid child support.
Hourly billing can easily be the most expensive since you have limited control over the number of hours that are spent on your case. In addition, the method used to break down time increments can vary from firm to firm.
For example, many attorneys bill in tenths of an hour (.10) which is the equivalent of six minutes however some lawyers may bill in fourths, such as .25, .50, .75 and 1.0. What this means for you is that a two-minute phone call can either be billed as one-tenth of an hour (6 minutes) or one-fourth of an hour (.25) which can make a difference in your overall bill.
All agreements cover the basics such as charges for photocopies, telephone conversations and the like (all of which you will be charged for) and they will (or should) also spell out any additional charges that might accrue and any minimum billing requirements that might be in place. These agreements should also cover an ancillary charges such as mileage, parking and mailing fees. Domestic phone calls are billed by the hour for example, however any long distance fees will be added to the bill on top of the amount charged for the attorney’s time.
When an Attorney-Client Retainer Agreement is signed, the client (that’s you) is required to place an agreed upon amount called a “retainer” into an escrow account of sorts as payment for upcoming bills. This ensures that the bills will be paid and when the retainer amount runs low, you’ll be required to add additional funds to continue the attorney-client relationship.
To make sure you fully understand the agreement you’re about to sign, you’ll want to read it thoroughly and ask questions if you don’t understand any portion of the contract. Most attorneys will be happy to give you time to read through the agreement and are equally as happy to answer any questions you might have. If they’re not, keep looking for another attorney.
By: Jeremy Reither
Attorneys and lawyers practicing family law take up cases relating to all kinds of family related issues. These can be adoption, prenuptial agreements, marriage, domestic violence, divorce, separation, legal separation, annulment, division of the property accumulated during the marriage, alimony, negotiation, adjudication, child custody and support, child abduction, kidnapping or child seizure, emancipation, abuse in the marriage, parental rights, paternity, juvenile, felonies etc., and many such cases related to family. Other than this they also deal with regular cases relating to criminal laws, property related laws, probation law, trusts etc. However, majority of the cases that come to family lawyers are the divorce, separation, abuse or child custody cases. A number of details need to be considered when it comes to these cases and family lawyers are specialized in all the legalities involved in such cases.
Lawyers and attorneys practicing family law are the best with more experience than qualifications. It is amazing how much documentation and negotiation is expected when taking care of a family related case. Along with this the lawyers must be able to support the party professionally, emotionally and morally all the while helping in separating the client from the spouse and in some instances from the children. Also, the lawyers dealing with the family law cases must be aware of the laws in that particular state as family law differs in each state.
Family law attorneys charge the fee depending on the type of case. In case of divorce, the price can range depending on whether the parties have still some issues pending between them such as property division, child custody, support etc., Most attorney charge either an hourly fee or a flat rate after the case is filed and the court accepts the divorce. However, the best kind of attorneys charge by the hour as there would be less scope of getting fleeced later on after getting a big settlement or alimony from the spouse. These hourly rates can vary depending on the area or state where the case is to be held. Of course, a lawyer in New York, Beverly Hills or Los Angeles would be expected to charge a lot more than a lawyer from a small place in Iowa! Also, it is a usual practice for the attorneys to charge a retainer, as is the case with regular lawyers practicing in other fields of law. If unable to bear the retainer charges, the court can make the spouse bear the retainer charges when the court is requested for counsel fee pedente lite! Pedente lite is a court order for taking financial care of a low income spouse while court proceedings are ongoing.
Family problems can be very upsetting and distressing and the best way to handle them is with the help of a lawyer experienced in practicing family law. An exhaustive list of lawyers that are qualified, experienced can be found either from the yellow pages or on the Internet with some effort. A word of advice, it is the best option to always go for a new lawyer chosen on basis of qualifications and experience instead of the ones recommended by friends or acquaintances or relatives to avoid any problems or explanations later on!
By: Steve Valentino
What is a family law attorney and why are they necessary? It is even more crucial you are familiar with these experts of family law since it seems strong families are becoming less and less in our modern day.
Here is a fact that is unfortunate but all to often becomes reality in 2010. When a mother and father gets a divorce and the family is divided the costs go way up. When all home expenses are shared by the man and woman the burden of making a living is also shared.
After a divorce everyone’s standard of living is lowered due to the fact that two separate households, versus one, has to be maintained. The state courts are then given the duty, unfortunately, of dividing the resources that used to support one family unit into two parts.
Its usually impossible to do this equally because many things the couple owned together cannot be simply cut in half. For instance a home cannot be sawed in half thus enabling each former spouse to get a half of it. This especially is true when there are children involved. The needs and expenses of the children involved changes from each passing year. The costs involved in raising elementary aged kids are much lower than the costs in raising teenagers.
In addition to that problem the circumstances of the adults involved changes. The income of the person ordered to pay child support or alimony, be it the father or mother, can drastically go up or down as time goes on.
And we have not even touched the issue of child custody including outlining visitation rights. With the divorce rate as high as it is in 2010 it does not take a genius to wonder why family law courts are always packed and system is overloaded. It is impossible to navigate all the courts, red tape, and legal documents with the help of an expert who deals with those things for a living.
Hopefully you understand the reason why a family law attorney at law is necessary when dealing with these sticky situations. These types of attorneys specialize in the field of law that deals with all family related issues and relations of the domestic nature. These fields include anything having to do with marriage, civil unions, domestic partnerships, abuse, legitimacy, adoption, divorce, marriage annulment, alimony, and child support payments.
The better they are familiar with each subject the better they are at winning the case (though really nobody ever wins when it comes to these types of cases). Many family law attorneys specialize in a niche somewhere within this giant field that gets bigger every year. One family law attorney will likely be more adept at marriage contracts than divorce proceedings. Another one might be excellent at property division while another attorney in the same general field will excel in nullity.
Depending on your needs it is a good idea to ask a prospective family law attorney what he or she focuses on and decide if that area of expertise is what you require.
Hopefully you never need a family law attorney but if you do you now know exactly what they do and how you can use them.
By: Wesley A Barras
