How does a Retainer Work when Hiring a Divorce Attorney
A retainer is a form of down payment on the services a person will be requiring of an attorney. It can vary in price depending on the attorney's fee. A divorce attorney will ask for a retainer in order to take the case and begin proceedings. Understanding how a retainer works can help a client understand what they are paying for, and why.
When it comes time to file for divorce, it comes time to search for the right divorce attorney to help with the proceedings. Not all divorce attorneys are right for every divorce case, and so clients need to take the time to research the different attorneys till they find the one that they feel comfortable with taking their case. Once that divorce attorney is picked, they will ask the client for a retainer. Understanding what that retainer is used for, and why it is needed helps a client feel more comfortable paying the fee upfront before the divorce attorney finishes their case.
A retainer is a fee that is based off of what the divorce attorney charges for their services. It is an estimate of what the charges will be for the divorce attorney to handle the divorce case for a client. The retainer does not necessarily cover the entire cost of the proceedings, and any fees above and beyond the retainer must still be paid for by the client. The retainer paid by the client does ensure that the divorce attorney, or his firm, is bound to handle their case, and cannot be hired by the competitor or the other half of the case.
A retainer can also be paid to a divorce attorney in order to have them available to the client when needed. If a client feels they will be having legal concerns on a regular basis, or wants to have an attorney available to them on an on call basis, a retainer can be paid in order for that to happen. In this case, the retainer is usually a monthly fee, instead of an estimate or down payment of the total cost of one preceding or case such as a divorce. Sometimes a divorce is not a simple procedure, and will have separate issues needing to be dealt with at different times. A client can put a divorce attorney on retainer to be available to them for each issue when it arises.