How much does a divorce lawyer cost?

A divorce procedure is a legal procedure that includes dealing with many disputes derived from the dismantling of the established couples' relationship, and more so if the couple have children. Since the couple are going on their new separate ways, parting also from the joint financial ability, obviously there is a significant financial change in their lives. To that one should add the cost of the legal procedure manifesting by the fee of the hired attorney. So, how much will a good, reliable divorce lawyer, one that will provide the wanted outcome, cost? The following short review will put things in order.

Cost of Mediation

The best way to divorce is by process of mediation. This procedure is done out of the court and aims to prepare an agreement that both parties agree on, in order to authorize it by the court without dispute. This process includes a few meeting for consultation at the end of which an agreement will be drawn.  This will include the lawyer's fee which is about 10,000 NIS (from each of the parties). To that one should add the cost of drawing the agreement up separately (in some cases). When the coupe has many disputes that require extra meetings and more mediation, the lawyer might ask for a fee for every extra hour, which could range from 500NIS up to 2,000NIS per hour, also depending on the law firm's prestige.

Cost of representation in court

When the couple decide to "fight it out" in court, they need to pay a lawyer for representation. The cost in this case is higher and could amount to more than 100,000NIS for regular cases such as division of property, child alimony, custody issues etc. each hearing in court will result in extra fees for your lawyer ranging from 1,000NIS to 5,000NIS. To all the above mentioned sums one must add V.A.T. and additional fees to the court or Rabbinic court (each claim has a different fee). If must be said that there are some unexperienced lawyer who charge less but you wouldn't want to trust an unexperienced layer with your money and life.It is important to understand that the cost for representation in court, presented above, is for one of the parties. In other words, each of the parties will have to pay for representation in court a fee to his/her lawyer. This could eventually amount to a loss of a quarter of a million N.I.S for the couple on its way to a verdict form the Rabbinic or family court. For this reason, it is advisable to consult with an experienced lawyer before starting the process, to see if the dispute should be ended in court or could it be done by mediation, even if that sometime means "painful" concessions.