The fee for every service (legal advice, handling a court case, preparing a litigation letter or other actions) is established individually. The rates depend first of all on the complexity of the case.
When starting cooperation at the first meeting we usually aim to establish every fact of the case and then we suggest possible legal actions to take. The cost of such legal advice is no less than PLN 150 gross, depending on the complexity of the situation and the case.
Then you decide whether you want to start cooperation and entrust us to handle your case comprehensively or whether you want us to perform only some actions, like writing a litigation letter to the court or another administrative body.
If comprehensive service is chosen, we sign a cooperation agreement, which is a typical agreement for provision of legal services.
The remuneration is calculated individually and generally comprises three components. The basic fee is charged in advance, upon accepting the order to handle the case. To help those in financial difficulties we have introduced the possibility to break down the payment. The number of payments and schedule are settled individually.
Additional fee is due on every separate representation in trial and/or court hearing and is also settled individually depending on the character of the case.
Finally we also establish a success fee for a favourable result in the case, which will be the cost of court representation awarded to the client by court from the opposing party.
The amount of basic fee is no less than minimal rates under the decree by the Minister of Justice on fees for actions taken by attorneys-at-law (Rozporządzenie Ministra Sprawiedliwości w sprawie opłat za czynności adwokackie) of 22 October 2015 (Dz.U., 2015, s. 1800) (amendments: Dz.U. 2017, s. 1797, Dz.U. 2016, s. 1668).
To put it simple: if we demand from the opposing party the return of an amount between PLN 10,000 and 50,000, the minimum fee will be no less than PLN 3,600. Thus in typical claims for payment the fee depends on the claim value.
On the other hand in some cases, like divorce, confirmation of inheritance acquisition or establishing land easement the minimum fees are set as particular amounts. For instance: in divorce cases the minimum fee is PLN 720, confirmation of inheritance acquisition it is PLN 120, and if it also includes the validity of the will – PLN 720, and in cases of establishing easement it is PLN 480.
In the so-called division cases (division of joint property, inheritance division etc.) the minimum fee depends on the client’s share in the property subject to division. Then the amount of fee is calculated similarly to a typical claim for payment of an amount.
Furthermore, the fee for permanent legal service (for businesses or natural persons) is a lump sum. The lump sum is a fixed amount paid monthly. The advantage of this solution is first of all no limit to cases, no hourly limit to an attorney’s work. It is not necessary to pay for every case separately. The client in in constant contact with the attorney, legal advice is provided on an as-needed basis, also on the phone. The lump sum depends on the scope of legal services commissioned to the firm.
We also would like to add that the above rules may change depending on the client’s needs and their life circumstances. They are not fixed rules, only the basic factors which affect the calculation of the fee.