Financing Your Legal Matter

By: Janice Dantes

 

Legal issues are expensive. Expect to spend $5,000 on an average divorce. Immigration petitions start at around $5,000 and a DUI can cost up to $10,000. These costs can drastically increase if you have a contested divorce, complicated immigration issues, or severe criminal penalties.

Pro bono attorneys only help those in poverty and on a limited basis. Because they are volunteers, do not expect that the case will move quickly or that your matter is prioritized above their paying clients.

Below are some ways to finance your legal issue:

1. Contingency. Some legal matters can be taken on a contingency basis. This means that the attorney agrees to take your case and is paid out of a settlement or verdict. Contingency arrangements are most common in personal injury, worker’s compensation, medical malpractice social security disability, and some landlord/tenant matters. However, contingency cases require the existence of an insurance policy or some kind of provision in the law that calls for the winner of a case to be awarded attorneys fees. Also, the damage you suffered has to be sufficiently large. Many Personal Injury attorneys will not take a case worth less than $50,000. For example, it will be difficult to find a lawyer for a car accident with no injuries even if the other driver was at fault.

2. Savings. Many cases have to be self financed. Family law, criminal, employment, breach of contract, probate will require you to pay money up front. Attorneys typically ask for a retainer of several thousand dollars to begin a case.

3. Friends and Family. If you don’t have savings but still need legal representation, start without borrowing from friends and family. They can provide interest free loans and may want to help you because of your relationship.

4. Legal Insurance. You can check your current insurance policies or employer insurance offerings to see if you have legal insurance. Some legal insurance companies include ARAG and Hyatt Legal Plans. Some matters are covered completely and others are partially covered. 5. Loans. You can also borrow money to pay your lawyer. I work with the finance company Flexxbuy. Be mindful that you may not qualify for a loan if you have poor credit.

6. Assets. Some real estate and probate cases can be financed by assets. With most real estate transactions, attorneys fees are paid at closing. Further, probate assets can be used to pay attorney’s fees.

If you have questions about financing your legal matter, please contact me at (312) 546-5077 or janice@pinaylaw.com.