FLAT FEES AND HOURLY RATES

HOW MUCH DOES A LAWYER COST?

Many of our services are offered on a flat-rate basis. Where they are, some of those are listed below. Hourly rates, flat fees and the initial retainers required are all matters discussed and agreed upon between the client and lawyer before services start.

CRIMINAL FILES

There is an initial, non-refundable retainer required. Once disclosure is received and the complexity of the file is determined, the interviewing lawyer quotes flat fees for the various lawyers in the office. The initial retainer starts at $2,500.00 plus GST for our most junior lawyer.

IMMEDIATE ROADSIDE SANCTION/NOTICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY/ IMPAIRED DRIVING PROVINCIAL APPEALS

The fee will depend on the experience level of the lawyer hired to work on the initial appeal and whether this is a first, second, or third occurrence. If you are not close to your filing deadline, we can open the file for an initial retainer of $1200 plus GST to give you an opinion. That non-refundable retainer fee goes towards the appeal fees if it becomes apparent that there are arguments for the appeal. If the reviewing lawyer does not see arguments on the file, we will send the file to another lawyer in our office for a second opinion.

If you are within a day or two of the filing deadline, we normally recommend setting the matter down for appeal. The appeal fee is $3,550.00 plus GST (inclusive of the initial retainer) for our most junior lawyer. If we have a Student-at-Law, he or she will charge less than that. If it turns out there are no viable arguments, the fees are refunded back to you (excluding the initial retainer).

So, if a client has paid for our opinion on the file, another $2,350 plus GST would be owing for our most junior lawyer to draft the written submissions and present oral argument at the IRS appeal hearing. To have our most senior lawyer run the appeal, $5,000 plus GST, in addition to the initial retainer, would be owing. We have three other lawyers whose fees fall between those two. For a first occurrence, those fees are complete and include the $150 SafeRoads filing fee; there would be no additional costs.

If you are past the 7-day deadline to appeal your SafeRoads Notice of Administrative Penalty, we charge $1350 plus GST for the application to apply for a late review. If you have arguments for the review itself, and your application for a late review is successful, we will discount your appeal fees by $500.00. The late review application will, therefore have only cost you $850 plus GST (that includes the filing fee for the application at SafeRoads).

If the appeal is successful there is no need to pay the $1200 fine, the tow and impound fees are refunded (usually between $1800 and $3000), there is no need to pay for ignition interlock and insurance rates do not go up. We are hearing that insurance rates go up by between $3,000 and $5,000 per year. When it is successful, the cost for the appeal pays for itself.

If the matter goes to judicial review, further fees will be required, again billed on a flat-fee basis. The cost will depend on the lawyer chosen to take the file and whether or not there is a Charter challenge in addition.

FAMILY LAW MATTERS

Most family law services are billed on an hourly rate. An initial retainer of $7,500 is normally, but not always, required The hourly rate varies with the experience of the lawyer hired. We are open to discussing flat fees for discrete, unbundled services.