FAQs for New Clients

Our goal is to maintain, preserve, and obtain what you value most. During every step of the case, we help our clients set reasonable expectations in order to obtain the best results possible. Our team is dedicated to outstanding communication and developing a relationship of trust with our clients. While we cannot guarantee a particular outcome, we will look at your case from every angle, help you set practical goals, and work to help achieve them.

The length of time before a divorce is finalized varies considerably based on several variables. Often, the most significant factors include the number of complex issues in the case and how quickly the parties can reach an agreement. Cases with children, high assets, or contested issues often take longer. Most divorces take between four and eighteen months to be resolved. Your attorney can give you an estimate of how long your case might take based on your situation.

Read more on “How Long Does a Divorce Take” to learn the factors that contribute to the length of a divorce.

Your legal team includes your attorney and their support staff, including (but not limited to) a paralegal and a legal assistant. Your attorney’s primary duty is to give legal advice and advocate for your interests during the divorce process, including in negotiations, mediation, and/or trial. They, along with the rest of the legal team, are responsible for preparing and filing all required legal documents with the court. Your attorney will also negotiate agreements on or litigate the issues in your divorce, including asset/debt division, child custody/support, and spousal support.

Read more about what a divorce attorney does for their client.

Every case is as unique as the family involved, and the cost is largely driven by the actions of both parties, the complexity of the issues at stake, and the decisions that are made throughout the case. This makes it difficult to predict the exact cost of your legal matter. However, we actively manage your legal costs as the case progresses and will keep you informed regularly.

Please read our tip sheet on how you can reduce costs in your case.

Our attorneys and staff charge a per-hour rate, which is billed in fractions of an hour. When you retain McKinley Irvin, you pay an advance fee deposit (AFD), which is deposited into a trust account. Legal fees are then drawn from the retainer as your case continues and fees and costs are incurred. If the funds are used before the case is complete, you will be required to replenish the funds for work on your case to continue. When the case is finished, you will be reimbursed any unused funds.

There are no cost guarantees as the progression of every case is unique. Your initial advance fee deposit is to get started on your case, and additional funds may be needed periodically to ensure you maintain a positive balance in your trust account.

No. We require a positive trust balance to continue working on your case.

We do not send invoices. You will receive a monthly statement during the first week of every month for the previous month’s case work. It includes a breakdown of the fees, the work performed on your case for that month, and your current balance.

In a divorce case, you should be prepared to pay your own legal fees. It is more common for each party to pay their own legal fees, unless there is bad faith by one party or a considerable disparity in the parties’ financial situations.

When a party requests that the other side pay their legal fees, the court applies a basic two-pronged test: 1) does the person making the request have a financial need, and 2) does the person being asked to pay have the ability to pay. Both questions must be found to be true by the court to award attorney’s fees.