In a highly contested Atlanta divorce, the costs can rise quickly. Since most contested Atlanta divorces involve situations that can change on a moment’s notice, Atlanta divorce lawyers often have to make quick decisions in order to protect a client’s interest. In certain situations, the Atlanta divorce lawyer has not had the opportunity to discuss the situation with the client ahead of time. In other situations, your Atlanta divorce lawyer may have had support staff working on your file behind the scenes to keep your case moving forward in a timely fashion.
What the above scenarios sometimes result in is a client receiving a bill that they do not understand and are hesitant to pay. In any scenario where you may have a question about a bill, you need to either call or meet with your Atlanta divorce lawyer to candidly speak with him or her about the bill. If you receive a bill that has some charges that appear high, do not call and say that the bill is too high. Contact your Atlanta divorce lawyer to ask him or her about the specific charges that you have questions concerning and why you have those questions. Often, there is a very reasonable explanation for the charges. Sometimes it is a simple billing error that the Atlanta divorce lawyer can quickly correct.
Aside from the obvious reasons why it is important to discuss the invoice with your lawyer, you do not want to lose trust in your lawyer. You may reach a point in your case where a very good settlement offer is made by your spouse. Your lawyer may tell you to take it because he or she knows you would never do better with the Judge you have in your case. If you do not trust your lawyer, you may reject the offer and try your case, only to receive a worse result in front of the Judge and potentially be open to attorney’s fees from your spouse for rejecting a good settlement offer.
One last note to make about communicating with your Atlanta divorce lawyer regarding fees is do not ignore an invoice that you cannot pay. If you are struggling with the invoice, immediately contact your Atlanta divorce lawyer and be honest. Tell him or her your situation and discuss what can be done to deal with the ongoing costs going forward. Pay whatever you can on the invoice as soon as possible and perhaps change your litigation strategy so that you do not spend your children’s college education in a contested divorce case.