Fee Arbitration

James Robert Page

There are many issues at stake in your case. First, the length of time it will take to file a complaint against your former attorneys involves variables: (1) Whether your current attorney is willing and able to file the complaint, (2) If your current attorney cannot or will not file the complaint-how long it will take you to find an attorney who will represent you in the matter, and (3) How busy the court calendar is in the court in which you file the complaint. Please keep in mind that even after you file a complaint, a case may go on for quite a lot longer than you want it to. You may want to contact the Office of Attorney Ethics, or contact the New Jersey fee arbitration hotline at 1-800-406-8594 for further assistance. You may want to review the official explanation of the grievance process on the website for the Office of Attorney Ethics at: http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/oae/atty_disc/atty_disc.htm.

What your case will boil down to is a judicial evaluation of your former attorneys' compliance with the state attorney ethics and professional conduct rules. Most states have a relatively generic rule regarding attorneys fees. The rule in many states is that an attorney's fee "Must be reasonable". Every state has its own particular definition of what constitutes a "reasonable fee". You will have to contact a local practitioner for assistance with this. The process will likely be time consuming and neither party (you or your former lawyers) will likely come through it fully satisfied. A court or hearing officer will ultimately determine whether the fees you were charged were "reasonable" or not. This process will include an investigation of whether or not you signed a fee agreement, and how often the attorneys advised you of the status of your case and the amount time (and money) they were spending on your divorce.

Gerald Gould Knapton

Are you in New Jersey? If so, as an alternative to court action, the Supreme Court of New Jersey has created 17 district fee arbitration committees, which will resolve, at your request, through binding arbitration, disputes concerning alleged unreasonable fees. To begin the process of determining whether the fee charged by your lawyer was reasonable you should dial the Ethics/Fee Arbitration Hotline, 1-(800)-406-8594. After you provide the zip code of the attorney's office address, you will be connected to the district fee arbitration Secretary who will provide you with a Request for Fee Arbitration Form.
This kind of program is set up to help you.
Give it a try.

Alec Scott Rose

I do not practice in New Jersey, but my answer is intended to apply general principles which should be applicable to your situation. For more specific advice, you should consult an experienced and reputable attorney in your area.

According to the web-site for the New Jersey Office of Attorney Ethics, Fee Dispute Program (link below), the program is not required to accept cases where the fee exceeds $100,000.00. If your fee exceeds $100,000.00, and you believe you were overcharged, you will need to bring a civil lawsuit against your attorney to recover the overpaid fees.

Were you receiving regular interim billings or statements when the fee grew to $100,000 or was this a surprise to you? Does your engagement agreement call for a specific hourly rate?

You should ask your attorney for a detailed copy of your billings, a full copy of your case file, an accounting of expenses, and a narrative explanation of the services performed and how the bill grew to be so large. Decide for yourself if you believe the explanation and documentation justify the fee, and consult another attorney in the field and see if he or she agrees with your assessment.