Fees and Costs in general

In general

Awareness of astronomical legal defense fees for highly-publicized criminal trials is common. Therefore, it is logical to assume that the client will be worried about how much his or her defense will cost. Where the attorney anticipates presenting the client with an estimate higher than the client will welcome, it may be best to defer discussion of fees until after the attorney has elicited as much information about the case as possible. This will minimize the risk that the client will become uncooperative and resentful of the attorney before the attorney has had an opportunity to learn about the case. This approach may, however, lead to counsel finding that he or she has wasted time in those cases where it turns out that the potential client cannot afford to retain the attorney.

Approaching the same issue from a different point of view, where the initial interview communicates the attorney's motivation to help the client, and demonstrates the amount of work the attorney has already put into analyzing the case, it will make it easier for the client to understand that for which he or she is expected to pay a large amount.

As a practical matter, the interview checklist questions will allow the attorney to learn many facts that will be useful both in setting the fee and making sure that it can be collected.