Attorney fees are negotiable, but in general D&S charges $375.00 an hour, with a initial retainer of at least $3,500 , in other words a $3,500 retainer would entitle the client to about 9 hours of attorney time. This would be enough to interview the client, draft the summons, petition, and a "Order to Show Cause," so that Jay or Mary could go to court and get temporary orders made. This would normally include the first court appearance. If Jay or Mary is representing a party that is not working and the opposing party is working they would request that the Judge or Commissioner make an order that the opposing party pay his fees and costs.

Sometimes during a case it becomes necessary to hire a forensic accountant or a real property appraiser. Forensic Accountants charge approximately $250 an hour. A Real Property Appraiser can normally complete an appraisal for $600. If custody is contested then the court may order the parties to retain a child custody evaluator who may or may not be a psychologist or psychiatrist. The cost of these evaluations ranges from $15,000 to 20,000 for a full evaluation of several parties.

No attorney can give an estimate of the total amount of attorney fees since it often depends on which attorney the other party hires and whether the other attorney sends out numerous letters, subpoenas, other forms of discovery, or files motions or ex partes to go to court. Prior to hiring any experts or evaluators Jay always gets client approval and will balance the costs versus the benefits expected. For example, Jay will not hire investigators to search for assets in foreign countries unless the client expects that numerous bank accounts with large dollar amounts can be expected to be found since the cost of these investigations is high.