Skip to Content Aug 24, 2021 - Child Support by Seastrom Tuttle & Murphy
If you’re struggling to get your former spouse to make the child support payments you need to care for your family, then you should definitely consider hiring an experienced Irvine child support lawyer. While you may think that hiring an attorney is an expense you simply can’t afford, you should consider the cost of legal representation against what you stand to lose without the experience and guidance of a knowledgeable attorney. The value of child support payments over your child’s lifetime could easily be tenfold as much as you would spend on hiring a lawyer!
How Much Does a Child Support Lawyer Typically Cost?
A seasoned family law attorney will generally bill within the $100 to $500 per hour range, accounting for time billed by their associate lawyers on research and writing. Typically, you can expect to spend anywhere between $2,500 to $5,000 on a relatively seamless child support case, while those that last for longer periods of time can run quite a bit higher. Likewise, in most instances, the cost of legal representation amounts to just about a year’s worth of child support payments – meaning you stand to recoup the expenses and then some!
Hiring an attorney offers a number of advantages: You’ll be guaranteed that someone with experience and deep knowledge of the law will be fighting on your behalf, and it will minimize the time and costly mistakes you might have to deal with if you try and navigate this on your own.
Which Factors Increase the Cost of an Attorney?
There are a variety of circumstances that might influence the total amount of money you’ll spend on an Irvine child support lawyer. For example, uncontested divorce and subsequent child custody and support hearings will generally be less costly than a contested divorce, which can require months of litigation. Within these types of cases, there are a number of expenses that can contribute to the ultimate cost of your Irvine child support lawyer. For example, if your attorney needs to hire a specialist or expert witnesses to assess the cost of your lifestyle, or do some finance and accounting investigations into your former spouse’s net worth, then their fee will need to be paid and you will ultimately cover that cost.
Similarly, attorney’s fees, court costs, paralegal fees and miscellaneous expenditures, like filing with the court, will also be factored into your total bill. Other expenses, such as travel or an overly difficult case to work out, can increase the cost of services.
Speak with an Irvine Child Support Lawyer Today
You may think that you can’t afford an Irvine child support lawyer, but what you really can’t afford is not hiring one. Hiring an attorney is your best chance at recovering the child support payments you are owed. Contact our offices today to get started.