Attorney's fees & costs

What it costs. In plain English.

Most of our cases are handled on contingency. That means you pay nothing upfront, and our fee comes from what we recover. Here is exactly how that works.
To start
$0
The consultation is free, and you never pay to open a case.
Our fee
A share
A percentage of what we recover — set in writing before any work begins.
If we don't win
$0 fee
No recovery means no attorney's fee. [Confirm how case costs are handled.]
How a contingency fee works

One example, start to finish.

The percentage depends on the type of case and how far it goes. Yours is written into your agreement before we start — and it is not set by law, so it can be discussed.
You receive
Our fee
Amount recovered
[$30,000]
Our fee ([33]% — example only)
[$10,000]
Case costs advanced by us
[$2,000]
You receive
[$18,000]
Illustration only, not a quote. Your agreement explains how costs are deducted and how that affects your recovery.
Case costs

Costs are not the fee. We advance them.

Costs are out-of-pocket expenses of the case itself. We pay them as the case goes, so money is never the reason a case stalls. [Confirm: whether costs are owed if the case does not succeed.]

Filing and service fees

What the court and process servers charge to start and deliver a case.

Records and reports

Credit reports, repair orders, police and medical records.

Depositions

Court reporters and transcripts when witnesses are questioned under oath.

Experts

Mechanics, accountants or medical experts, when a case needs one.
When the other side pays

Many consumer laws make the company cover the fees.

In these cases, the fee can come from the other side on top of what you recover. We will tell you at the start if that applies to you.
Debt collection

FDCPA & Rosenthal Act

A collector who breaks the rules can be ordered to pay your attorney's fees.
Lemon law

Song-Beverly Act

If your car is a lemon, the manufacturer pays your attorney's fees and costs.
Credit reports

Fair Credit Reporting Act

Bureaus and lenders that violate the law can be made to pay your fees.
Consumer law

Consumers Legal Remedies Act

Businesses that deceive consumers can owe the consumer's attorney's fees.
Your written agreement

Everything in writing, before we start.

California law requires contingency fee agreements to be in writing. Ours spells out, in plain words:
The percentage we charge, and whether it changes if the case goes to trial
How case costs are paid, and how they affect our fee and your recovery
That the fee is not set by law and can be negotiated
What happens with related matters the agreement does not cover
That you get a signed copy to keep
Questions

Questions about fees.

Not for our fee in a contingency case. Our fee is taken from the recovery, as set out in your agreement.

The same agreement applies. Your agreement may set a lower percentage if the case ends before a lawsuit is filed.

Most are. If a different arrangement fits your situation better, we explain it and put it in writing before any work starts.