Attorney Fees – Billing

Legal services are an investment. You get one bite at the apple for the most part in court proceedings and no do overs, so it is wise to invest in a guide who understands the law, procedure and court system. It is also helpful to understand how attorney’s fees are billed and paid as the traditional system differs from other service providers.

For full-scope representation, clients pay a “retainer”, which is kept like a security deposit to be used towards the end of the case when resolution is clear or to be refunded. The retainer is placed into our trust account and kept there. We then send bills every two weeks for your review and payment. We ask that you keep a credit card on file to pay the biweekly bills. We only draw on the retainer as a back up if there is an issue with charging the card, and then we ask you for new card information.

By paying biweekly, you always have sufficient funds in reserve. We also perform flat fee legal services for uncontested matters, where you simply pay one fee for completion of an entire legal action. Flat fees are not possible for full-scope contested matters because we do not know what the level of cooperation or conflict will be. Our retainer rate is $3000.00 for full-scope representation, where we handle everything for you on your case from start to finish. However if there is a hearing already set in your case, the retainer fee may be higher. For an appeal, we can often quote you a flat fee, which depends on the complexity of the legal issues involved.

If there is more than one type of case, for example, there could be a county protection order case and a domestic relations dissolution case, then usually each case will require a separate retainer, however sometimes we can offer a lower, combined retainer.

If we have an opening for modest means representation we may be able to offer reduced fees if you meet certain criteria based on the HUD 2022 Low Income Guidelines.

If your income falls within the first bracket below, we may be able to charge $125 per hour for out-of-court services, in-court services, and mediation services.

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If your income falls within the second bracket we may be able to charge $145 per hour for out-of-court services, in-court services, and mediation services.

First Bracket
Maximum
Household Size Annual Income Monthly Income

1. 43,900 3,658
2. 50,200 4,183
3. 56,450 4,704
4. 62,700 5,225
5. 67,750 5,646
6. 72,750 6,063

Second Bracket
Maximum
Household Size Annual Income Monthly Income

1. 63,000 5,250
2. 72,000 6,000
3. 81,000 6,750
4. 89,950 7,496
5. 97,150 8,096
6. 104,350 8,696

We only bill you for the time that we spend on your case and because each case is different, we don’t know up front what the cost of a contested case will be. The higher the cooperation, the lower the cost. A Janko Family Law, we attempt to reach agreement with the other party, if possible, to keep relations as constructive as possible and costs as low as possible. Janko Family Law does offer a military and first responder discount as well as lower paralegal rates for legal support work on cases.

For those who feel that they can handle some aspects of their cases themselves, or are looking for a lower overall case cost, we can offer “unbundled,” discrete services where we perform some tasks and you perform others. Discrete services could involve drafting motions or giving legal coaching advice or assistance with a mediation, or any number of other types of tasks that are performed in the course of legal representation.

We provide a free initial consultation to give general information and to identify legal options. For legal advice about specific case aspects, we offer a one-hour paid legal advice session.

In court cases various expenses are incurred, to include filing or service of process fees, for example. If we are retained for full scope representation, we generally pay initial filing and service fees from the retainer and add the expenses to the bill. Certain other fees are usually paid directly by the client to the provider, such as transcript fees, deposition fees or appraisals.

We are happy to answer questions about billing and require compliance with invoices and payments. Bills are generated every two weeks and we send them to you for the opportunity to review and ask any questions that you may have.

If you have questions about your fees or billing, contact Janko Family Law for a free case assessment to determine what your legal options are and how we might assist in resolving your legal issue so that you can put it behind you. We can be contacted at 719-344-5523.