Billing & Rates
At GEM Family Law, we understand that hiring an attorney is a financial commitment. Our family law attorneys have created fee structures that allow our firm to provide representation to a variety of clients and to provide services that meet the unique needs of each family law case. We know that no two cases or clients are alike.
When you work with an attorney at GEM Family Law, fees and rates vary, depending on the specific services that you seek, and fall under the following categories:
- Free initial consultation
- Full-service legal representation
- Unbundled legal services
- Mediation
- Child and family investigation
- Parenting coordinating/decision-making
Free Consultation
Our free consultation is an opportunity for a potential client to meet with an attorney, ask general questions and determine if GEM Family Law is the right fit for them. This initial consultation does not establish a client-attorney relationship but is protected as confidential. The more we know about your case prior to your free initial consultation, the more efficiently we can use our time together. As such, we recommend taking the time to submit the details of your case via our client intake form before your consultation.
Legal Representation
GEM Family Law provides legal services at an hourly rate. Generally, when you hire an attorney to represent you in litigation or for representation in your collaborative law matter, your attorney takes the lead and guides you through your case from start to finish. Research or support services performed by law clerks, legal assistants or paralegals are charged at a lower rate than your lead attorney’s rate, but also on an hourly basis. Retainers are required in each case and will vary depending on a number of factors. These may include, but are not limited to, a case’s complexity, estimated time commitment and effort, whether a hearing is already scheduled and imminent, and the county to which your case is assigned.
GEM Family Law allows the client to choose a sustaining retainer, which means that clients keep the initial retainer amount in the client’s trust account throughout the pendency of the case, with payments made at the time of billing to resustain the retainer to keep it at one constant level. This allows us to take cases with a lower initial retainer than many law firms in the Denver metro area.
Unbundled Legal Services
GEM Family Law offers unbundled (or limited scope) legal services to clients. Should you decide that you do not want or cannot afford a family law attorney to take the lead on your case, but you still desire legal advice, help in reviewing or drafting documents, or consultation about any other matters regarding your family law case, you may hire one of our attorneys to help you on a limited scope basis. Unbundled services allow you to take the lead in your family law case with the comfort of having an attorney whom you can turn to, should you need help understanding any aspects of the legal process. To determine the retainer and/or fee required for unbundled services, schedule a free consultation with one of our family law attorneys.
Mediation
Mediation offers families the opportunity to resolve their family law cases without going to court. This less adversarial route often resolves family law concerns more satisfactorily for both parties and allows for less conflict (and cost) than litigation. GEM Family Law offers mediation services at an hourly rate. Costs of mediation are generally split equally between parties unless a different agreement is reached before the mediation. To learn more about the hourly rates of GEM Family Law mediators, give our office a call at 720-443-4892.
Child And Family Investigation
If one of our family law attorneys has been appointed as a Child and Family Investigator in your divorce or child custody case, they will charge against the retainer that is paid at their hourly rate, which is lower than the hourly rate charged for traditional legal representation. For more information on the hourly rates of the attorneys who provide child and family investigation expertise, call our main line at 720-443-4892.
Parenting Coordinating/Decision-Making
If one of our family law attorneys has been appointed as a parenting coordinator/decision-maker in your case, your PC/DM will charge an hourly rate lower than that of traditional legal representation against the retainer that you have paid. For the specific hourly rates and retainer requirements of the experienced family law attorneys who offer this service at our firm, call us at 720-443-4892.