Divorce Advice for Men | Fathers Rights Divorce | Child Custody

Question:

I was ordered to pay $3,000 of my ex's attorney fees from our divorce case. However, I never received any paperwork from the lawyer or the court detailing how to make payments, what fees and services I was paying for, etc.

A year later I received an invoice from the lawyer for almost $4,000. Do I have to pay this? Shouldn't I have been invoiced sooner, and how did the costs go up by $1,000?

By Angela Foy

Attorney, Cordell & Cordell

When it comes to attorneys’ fees and who pays them, the general practice, called the American rule, is that each side pays for his or her own attorney.  It is not the case, as it is in other jurisdictions, that the “loser” has to pay the entire, actual amount of the “winner’s” attorney’s fees.  However, one party may be required to pay the other party’s attorney in certain circumstances.

Question:

We have my 401K and investment property with a little equity, but due to the economy we have very little cash.

Will the fees for attorneys come from the sale of assets and the 401K, or will I be responsible to come up with more money outside our assets?

by Richard J. Coffee, Cordell & Cordell, P.C.

Of all the issues attendant to your domestic litigation matter, understanding the legal fees and costs incurred on your behalf should be the least confusing aspect.  Lengthy litigation costs are usually foreign to many domestic litigation participants.