Attorney Fee Estimator
Estimate attorney fees by case type for divorce, DUI, personal injury, and estate planning.
Returns flat fee and hourly rate ranges with projected cost.
Changing your currency elsewhere on the site will not affect this page.
Attorney fee and legal cost estimation helps clients understand the full financial scope of legal representation before engaging counsel. Legal fees vary dramatically by billing model, practice area, and geographic market.
Hourly billing total formula: Total Legal Cost = Attorney Hours × Hourly Rate + Paralegal Hours × Paralegal Rate + Disbursements
Where disbursements include: court filing fees, process server fees, expert witness fees, travel expenses, and copying/printing costs.
Contingency fee formula (personal injury, malpractice): Attorney Fee = Settlement or Judgment Amount × Contingency Percentage
Standard contingency fee: 33.3% if settled before trial; 40% if case goes to trial; 45% on appeal.
Flat fee structure: Total Cost = Flat Fee + Filing Fees + Other Disbursements
What each variable means:
- Retainer: an upfront payment deposited into the attorney’s trust account; billed against at the agreed hourly rate as work is performed. Not the same as total cost, it is an advance against fees.
- Hourly rate: varies by experience, practice area, and city. Associates: $200–$350/hr. Partners at large firms: $400–$1,000+/hr.
- Contingency: client pays no upfront fees; attorney collects only if the case is won. Common in plaintiff’s personal injury; banned in some jurisdictions for criminal and family law.
- Disbursements: out-of-pocket expenses charged to the client at cost; must be detailed in the engagement letter
Reference: what this calculator returns, by case type and complexity
These are the same US national figures the tool above uses, so you can sanity-check a result without running it.
| Case type | Simple | Moderate | Complex | Usual fee structure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple (uncontested) divorce | $1,500 | $3,500 | $5,000 | Flat fee or hourly |
| Contested divorce | $15,000 | $25,000 | $50,000 | Hourly + retainer |
| Criminal, misdemeanor | $2,000 | $3,500 | $5,000 | Flat fee |
| Criminal, felony | $5,000 | $15,000 | $25,000 | Flat fee or hourly |
| Personal injury | $5,000 | $15,000 | $30,000 | Contingency (33%) |
| Bankruptcy (Chapter 7) | $1,000 | $2,000 | $3,500 | Flat fee |
| Estate planning | $1,000 | $2,000 | $3,000 | Flat fee |
| Business formation | $500 | $1,200 | $2,000 | Flat fee |
| Immigration | $3,000 | $5,000 | $8,000 | Flat fee |
| Child custody | $3,000 | $8,000 | $25,000 | Hourly + retainer |
| DUI/DWI defense | $3,000 | $5,000 | $10,000 | Flat fee |
| Real estate transaction | $500 | $1,500 | $3,000 | Flat fee |
Two rows need a footnote.
A simple will on its own runs $300–$800, well under the estate-planning figures above. Those assume a will plus powers of attorney and a healthcare directive, which is the package most firms actually sell.
The personal injury row is not money you pay out. It is the attorney’s cut of the settlement, taken off the top before anything reaches you. Read it as the fee you will have paid, not as an upfront cost.
Worked example: Contract dispute. Attorney rate: $350/hr. Estimated 40 hours of work. Paralegal: $120/hr, 15 hours. Filing fee: $400.
Attorney fees: 40 × $350 = $14,000 Paralegal fees: 15 × $120 = $1,800 Filing fees: $400 Total estimated legal cost: $16,200
Opposing party offers $20,000 settlement. Net to client: $20,000 − $16,200 = $3,800 net gain if you win. Weigh that against settling now for less and keeping all of it.
How we build and check this calculator
This calculator runs entirely in your browser, so the numbers you enter stay on your device. The math behind it is written by hand and tested against worked examples and standard references before the page goes live.
SuperGlobalCalculator is independently built and maintained. See how we build and verify our calculators.
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