Before, during and after your case you will likely hear your attorney mention “fees” and “costs.” To you as the client, though, this is one number; because at the end of the case the entire amount is subtracted from the final settlement or verdict amount. But it is important to understand the distinction between the two. Whether you are in a contingency case or being billed hourly, “fees” are attorney fees. This is what the attorney makes, i.e., in a contingency this will be a percentage of the total and in an hourly case these are the hourly billed charges. Costs, however, typically do not “go” to the attorney, but are usually reimbursement for funds that were forwarded on the client’s behalf during the case or must be paid to third parties upon completion. “Costs” are case costs. This includes, but is not limited to: filing fees, expert witness fees, deposition transcripts, court reporters, travel, medical liens, medical records retrieval, and postage, etc. Case costs are imperative to building your case because without these services, the lawyer wouldn’t be able to build your case properly.
In California, the fee to file an unlimited civil lawsuit (claim above $25,000) is $435. It is also the same for a defendant to appear in the case. The initial lawsuit documents must be personally served on the parties. Depending on how difficult it is to find or serve the documents and how many parties there are, this can range from $50 to several hundred dollars. Once the case is underway, there will be the necessity to file certain motions. Each motion filed by any party has a filing fee of $60. There is no cost to oppose a motion if the defendant has already appeared in the case.
Typically, the highest cost in a case is the expert witness or witnesses. Depending on the type of case, sometimes there can be a necessity for multiple expert witnesses. For example, in an injury case there may need to be multiple doctors: one to testify to the injury, one to testify to the surgery, a separate expert to testify about billing codes, an economist to demonstrate present and future lost wages and lost household services, and an expert who recreated the scene of the accident for visual effect for the judge and jury. Even if just one expert is hired through trial, their cost can easily exceed $10,000. This is why many law firms won’t take cases below a certain amount—because it is not economically feasible due to the cost of the case compared with the projected outcome.
Attorneys will usually have an estimate at the outset of the case for what the costs will be. However, this is not always a definitive number and can always change. It is important to note that while these costs ultimately come out of a final settlement or verdict, they are a necessary part of almost all cases.
