Fees for Family Law Matters

Fee Structure

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Hourly Rate

For most of our family law matters, we bill our work on an hourly rate basis. The full cost of legal representation will therefore depend on how much work has been done on the file. We adopt the hourly fee basis because it is usually impossible to estimate how long and how much work it will take to complete most family law matters. 

We require clients to provide us with an initial retainer. The retainer funds will be deposited in our trust account, where we keep our clients’ money, until some, or all the work has been done on the file. We are only able to access the trust funds to pay ourselves after we have done the work and provided the client with an account. Our retainer agreements will usually require the client to replenish the retainer when the funds in trust have been depleted.

Current Hourly Rates

Lawyers: $250.00 to $450.00

Law Clerks: $100 – $150.00

Legal Aid

We still accept legal aid certificates for most family law matters.

Flat Rate Fees

In some limited instances, we offer our services at a flat rate. When this happens, there are no hidden fees. This means that, on accepting the retainer, the work will be completed for the agreed flat fee regardless of how long it takes to complete the matter. 

At present, we offer flat fees for:

Simple Uncontested Divorce – $2,500 + HST (This amount includes compulsory court fees and disbursement)

Domestic Contracts and Separation Agreements (The fees charged will depend on the complexity of the agreement to be drafted. Our retainer agreements for domestic contract will always indicate that hourly fees will apply if the drafted agreement becomes heavily negotiated)

Payment Plans

We recognise that people with limited means are not exempt from family matters that require the assistance of counsel. Accordingly, in appropriate cases, we draw up a payment plan to assist clients to meet their obligations as they relate to our fees. 

Cost Management Strategies

At OBVLaw, we are cognisant of the need to conserve funds and stretch each dollar as far as it can go. The first aspect of the cost management strategies available to our clients has to do with the experience and advanced competencies we bring to bear on each matter. The experience we have in the areas we accept retainers will usually result in the expending of less time on each aspect of a case. The other aspect of the cost management strategies we recommend to our clients include tips we provide from the early stages of the solicitor-client relationship on how to stretch the retainer funds. We also encourage cost-effective approaches to resolution of matters whenever possible.   

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