What does a divorce cost in California? | Huggins Family Law | Orange County Divorce Attorney and Child Custody Lawyer Robin C. Huggins

Posted July 22, 2009 by Robin C. Huggins

When you hire an attorney to process your divorce in California, you will most likely be required to sign a retainer agreement. In California, retainer agreements are required when an attorney believes that your fees may exceed $1,000. (Like all rules, there are exceptions but for these purposes I will just state general law). The retainer agreement you sign with the attorney is a binding contract and should spell out clearly the amount of the retainer required, the hourly fee the attorney charges, the costs that you can be billed for and other contractual obligations of both attorney and client.

Unfortunately there is no clear cut answer as to what a divorce will end up costing a person. But I can help clarify the issue for you. If you are going to file for divorce or hire an attorney to represent you in a divorce, you should hire a "family law attorney". Family Law is a very specialized area and the attorneys that limit their practices to family law tend to be more diligent at keeping abreast of changes of law and rules in the family law arena. You hopefully would not go to an obstetrician to have an operation on your hand, so why hire just any attorney to handle your family law matter? If you want the best possible outcome then start off by hiring a family law attorney, not a civil attorney, not a bankruptcy attorney, not a real estate attorney. Next, you want to choose an attorney that has been practicing law for a sufficient amount of time. Usually (but not always) the hourly fee will increase the longer an attorney has been in practice. This is not always the case because some junior associates are hired for more prestigious firms that tend to handle higher estates and thus charge a higher hourly fee. So always ask the potential attorney 1) how much of their practice is devoted to family law; and 2) how long they have been practicing family law. I charge $250.00 per hour and my goal is to keep my hourly rate at $250.00 per hour for as long as I can because my target market (the clientele I focus on) is what I consider to be "the average Orange County family."

My initial retainer is $2,500. This is the amount of money that is paid to the attorney at the beginning of the attorney-client relationship. Many attorneys charge more than this amount because they want to ensure that their fees will be secured. A few attorneys will charge less. Some attorneys will agree to alternate arrangements if you ask and are able to articulate up front what you can afford and when it can be paid (and then stick with your agreement!). The client should not look to the attorney to carry them financially. The attorney is there to process your legal matter not to act as a bank for you. Thus, you should arrange for financing on your own whether its by using credit cards, or loans from friends, family or a financial institution.

The most inexpensive divorce I can process in a traditional attorney-client relationship (under the best of circumstances) is $3,000. They only go up from there. Court appearances greatly increase the cost of divorce so minimizing the number of court appearances can help keep your costs down. I would say that for an "average" household in Orange County, divorces run $6,000-$20,000 per person. If a party is unreasonable in their expectations or demands then the cost can increase. If experts are needed on a case then the cost will definitely increase (but they are worth it when they are needed.)

In my "Recommended Reading" section there is a divorce workbook that you can buy either on this site or at any bookstore. This workbook will help you collect data and documents that you will need in your divorce. In the "Testimonials" section of my website are comments by real clients that have posted their comments to my website concerning their satisfaction with my services.

My candor is not done for the purpose of putting off a potential client, but rather, to help inform the general public. I have always believed that people operate more efficiently and make better decisions, when they are given advice or information that is as accurate and candid as possible. If you have a question that has not been answered in my website or blogs, or if you need clarification on something I have said, please call me or us the form in the "contact" section of my website.

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