Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less.
Everyone knows lawyers are expensive and no-one likes paying their bills. So here are 5 simple tricks you can use to keep those fees down and still get the same result.
Lawyers are expensive. There is really no arguing that so we won’t try here.
But there are some simple do’s and some definite don’ts that make the difference between huge lawyer bills and not so huge lawyer bills. And choosing the cheaper way won’t even make a difference to the result.
A large part of the final cost of your separation comes down to how you interact with your ex, your lawyer and the legal system. Lawyers are like any tool to be used only where needed and only when needed and if you can keep that in mind you can keep your lawyer fees down. So how expensive this process turns out to be basically comes down to you.
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
the cost of your separation will come down to how you interact with your ex, your lawyer and the legal system.
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
1: Everything your lawyer does, costs.
Your lawyer is not your friend, your hitman or your therapist. They are not there to sooth you or exact revenge when your ex says or does something stupid, offensive or annoying. Your ex may make outlandish claims, demand way more than they are entitled to, threaten you, or just be downright nasty and it is perfectly reasonable to be really upset at all of that. The worst way to handle that is to forward it all to your lawyer, the best thing to do is to keep a copy (just in case), send a short email to your lawyer letting them know it’s happening (to have a record), ignore it and remind yourself the best revenge is living well.
Because every time you forward it your lawyer needs to respond and every letter your lawyer writes, every text you send them to read and every stupid email your ex sends which you forward for your lawyer to read will cost you money. And there is good reason for that, your lawyer needs to carefully consider everything you send and they have to carefully respond taking in to account your legal position and any possible legal fallout.
Separation is hard and emotional and both you and your ex will do and say things you normally wouldn’t and which you may regret. But every time you can accept that, cut your ex some slack, and see it for what it really is, you are not paying your lawyer.
Spacer
For a free no obligation 15 minute What’s Next chat click this link
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
2: Be honest.
The more honest you are with your lawyer the smoother everything will be and the cheaper everything will be. There is nothing which will rack up the fees quicker than if you lawyer puts in a whole lot of work which has to be thrown out because you told them something incorrect or inaccurate.
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
Not telling the whole truth burns goodwill making negotiations much harder and more expensive.
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
In family law everything is built on everything else because you are dividing your assets so a secret bank account, a bit of crypto you forgot to mention or an inheritance you are getting will bring the whole thing down like a house of cards and could mean starting from scratch. Keeping secrets also burns goodwill and trust with the other side making negotiations harder and more time consuming i.e. more expensive.
Remember, your lawyer is on your team, they are in your corner so there is no reason to not tell them everything. After all they can’t effectively represent you and your interests if they don’t know the facts.
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
3. Is this a me job?
Communication with your ex may be really hard, hard enough that you wonder why you were ever together in the first place. But the more you communicate directly with each other the cheaper, quicker and easier the whole process will be.
You might be surprised to know that even during a separation there will be times when you will need each other’s help even if you aren’t coparenting. Tracking down documents and getting values for things are just two of many. If you choose to get your lawyers to do it rather than doing it yourself every letter will cost and every letter your lawyer writes has to be responded to by their lawyer which has to be responded to by your lawyer which has to be responded to by their lawyer and repeat. That is how your lawyers fees get out of control.
We get that communicating with your ex might be the last thing you want to do, you might even dread it and getting your lawyer to do it may seem like a better choice. But don’t worry I am here to save you from the awkward phone call or the talk at kid handover. Because there are a few simple ways you can get the message to them without having to talk directly.
ChatGP is a great way to write unemotional messages to your ex. If you enter all the details you want to include (what, where, when etc) ChatGP will write you a message you can then forward to your ex.
Spacer
ChatGP, coparenting apps and a dedicated email are just some of the ways you can help communication with your ex.
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
There are also quite a few coparenting apps which help you communicate while also keeping things civil (find the five best here).
Or you could create an email address (e.g. gmail or outlook) just for communicating with your ex and only look at it once a day or once a week.
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
4. Think big.
When you get bogged down in the process – which most people do at some point – you need to remember the big picture.
The first time you meet with us we will talk to you about what what is most important to you and what you really need and want for the next stage of your life. That first meeting will become the big picture and that is what you need to focus on when things get tough or when your ex (or their lawyer) is driving you nuts.
It’s easy to find yourself worrying about percentages, getting annoyed by silly claims your ex makes, fuming over nasty lawyers letters, thinking about wining or losing or obsessing about tiny details. But none of that get’s you very far, it drives your costs up and mostly it actually doesn’t matter to the big picture.
So when that happens; step back, take a breath and remember the big picture. What is most important to me, what am I trying to achieve, what do I need to begin my next chapter.
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
To book a free no obligation 15 minute What’s Next chat click this link
spacer
5: Negotiate don’t litigate
The last and most important, whatever you do try to stay out of court.
We hear all the horror stories. Like the guy who spent 7 years and $600,000 only for his ex to propose and accept a worse deal than was offered to her right back in the beginning. Or the woman who’s life was in limbo for three years – unable to either sell the house or afford the mortgage – while she waited for her day in court.
Everyone comes in to this process thinking they want their day in court. They want a Rottweiler of a lawyer who will fight for them because that is how they will get the best deal.
It sounds right, except it isn’t because court is incredibly expensive, incredibly stressful and incredibly time consuming.
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
They want a Rottweiler of a lawyer who will fight for them because that is how they will get the best deal.
Spacer
Currently in the Family Court of Western Australia the average wait time is 152 weeks. So that is three years of lawyer bills before you even get your day in court. And once you have spent all that money and waited your three years FCWA figures show there is a 90% chance you will come to an out of court agreement in the last days before your court hearing. An agreement that could probably have been made without spending a fortune and without waiting three years.
So, the best way to pay your lawyer less and get the same result is to treat the whole thing like a business deal. Collaborate, negotiate, listen to your lawyers advice and remember this is a process that will end and when it does you get to begin your next chapter.
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
For help with your separation or parenting issues contact BrightSide
Lawyer fees: 5 tricks to pay your lawyer less
Spacer
Or find us on
Susan Hewitt is the Principal at Bright Side Family Law, a non-litigious family law and mediation practice. Susan has worked as a lawyer and journalist for almost 30 years. She is an accredited collaborative lawyer and FDRP mediator who is committed to helping families through their relationship breakdown in an honest, cooperative and respectful manner.
Social