Services

We bill clients on an hourly rate basis like most family lawyers. Our hourly rates are very competitive because we operate a cost-effective practice. We understand that family law can be expensive, even to those with above-average incomes. We offer choices so that clients can get quality services on their budget. We help clients calculate the cost/ benefit of their available options. The cost of each case will depend on its unique circumstances and your instructions. It usually takes longer to resolve a high-conflict case in court than it does to draft a separation agreement with minimal conflict. If you are willing to spend more time on your case, you can often save money on legal fees.

Hourly rates need to be enough to cover the cost of operations, including support staff and office expenses, with a reasonable markup. Our business is run virtually. We do not require full time office space, or the significant costs associated. We are focused on maximizing the efficiency of our family law practice. We intend to offer competitive hourly rates compared to the market, while providing high quality service.

Yes, except for legal coaching services. A retainer is like putting gas in the tank (or charging the battery) for a legal vehicle.  Sometimes we can get to the client's destination on one tank or charge, but if there are delays or detours we may need to request a refill. We usually require a lower retainer for unbundled services or mediation, and a higher retainer for representation in court. It depends on the time estimated to complete the requested services.

The retainer deposit we offer depends on the services you request. The minimum initial deposit typically provides for up to 10 billable hours for unbundled services, up to 15 billable hours for mediation, and up to 20 billable hours for representation in court. To help clients budget wisely, understand their options, and choose the right service, we usually start with an in-depth consultation meeting. The path you start on can be difficult to change later, so the consultation meeting is important to help you decide how to proceed with your case.

Click “Contact us” below. We will respond in a prompt and timely manner. We usually start with an in-depth consultation meeting to understand your case, assess your options, help you budget, provide resources, and give you specific legal advice. We charge for an hour even if it takes longer to prepare for and attend the meeting. We want to help prospective clients choose the best path forward for their case. Proceeding hastily or based on insufficient information (free 15–30-minute consultations) can do more harm than good and have a lasting negative impact on your case. The intake process is different for mediation as explained in the following FAQ.

We will meet each spouse separately to discuss what matters to you and them. This is not to take sides, but simply to understand the issues from both perspectives and to provide referrals that may help each person to fully participate in the mediation. Each spouse signs an agreement acknowledging our mediation terms including the cost, confidentiality, limited circumstances when confidentiality may not apply, etc. If both sides want to schedule mediation, they pay our retainer deposit which provides for a minimum of 15 billable hours. The cost is split equally unless otherwise agreed. The retainer depends on our estimated time to prepare for, attend mediation, and draft any pending agreements afterwards, which are subject to independent legal advice.

When you give us a retainer deposit, we hold the deposit in trust for you. We can only pay ourselves after we provide services to you and send you an interim or final account for those services. If we resolve your file sooner than expected and you still have unused funds in our account, then we return the remaining funds to you.

Lawyers must provide detailed accounts to clients showing what services they have rendered, but not all lawyers provide accounts showing how much time each individual task takes, the dollar value for each task, or whether support staff or junior lawyers are doing the work. All the client may see is the total legal fees, plus any disbursements (i.e. photocopying) and HST. We think clients should be entitled to fully itemized accounts showing what each service and task is costing them. This is important so clients understand how much time it takes to complete certain tasks, which helps you evaluate the cost/ benefit of decisions for how to proceed with your case. For some clients, this information helps them understand how much time they for a lawyer and what tasks they can do themselves to save money.

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