Facing a family law matter in Atlanta?
When you’re headed toward divorce, child custody hearings, or post-judgment modifications, it’s always a good idea to have legal representation. The problem is, when you enlist the services of a typical law firm, it’s often impossible to know what you’ll end up paying for their legal services. That’s because they charge by the hour, and they won’t give you an estimate for the amount of time it may take to work your case. They want to be able to add as many hours to your bill as possible to make more money off of your family law case. Edwards Family Law is different since we create a unique flat price for each of our client’s cases. A flat fee lawyer means you’ll know exactly what a contract with us will cost you. Created to fit your budget. Customized to your needs.
In 2008 in Georgia, Shaojun Gao hired Cordell & Cordell, P.C., to represent him in his divorce proceedings. The divorce was expected to involve extensive issues with child custody. Specific hourly rates were agreed upon in the contract, with the stipulation that the attorney’s fees might exceed the estimate the law firm provided to Gao. When all was said and done, Gao experienced some temporary child custody wins during the case. However, he ended up paying Cordell & Cordell almost $50,000 for their legal services in his divorce before terminating his contract with the law firm. The divorce lawyer representing Gao ended up leaving the firm and informing Gao in a recorded phone conversation that he believed the firm’s practices in beefing up billable hours did a disservice to their clients. Through a long road of legal actions, Gao ended up suing the law firm for the overbilling and was awarded over $23,000 after a jury trial.
Other law firms like Cordell & Cordell refuse to estimate the amount of work and the types of services your unique legal matter will require. However, Edwards Family Law is skilled at understanding what will go into each of our client’s cases, and we commit to our transparent flat-rate pricing structure for each case. Before entering any agreements, we’ll discuss with you the services we can provide for your family law case and create a customized flat fee billing offer to represent you—no surprises and no hidden fees.
Some hourly-rate law firms would have you believe that lawyers who charge flat fees are somehow less efficient or less skilled than they are. The reality is Edwards Family Law does not compromise on quality, and there are a ton of benefits to our flat rate billing structure.
Our clients can budget appropriately for our law firm’s legal fees because they know exactly how much our representation will cost them when all is said and done. They won’t get any surprise fees, extra billing hours, or charges for additional services on their bill at the end of the day.
We know how much time our services will take in your family law case, which is how we can offer you a customized flat fee arrangement. At the same time, we want to keep costs down in our own business structure, which means we’ll work quickly and efficiently to settle your case. Your divorce, child custody arrangement, or other family law matter will be resolved faster than at a billable hour law firm, but still with the best possible outcome.
Like we said, we don’t sacrifice the quality of our legal services. If you look solely for the lowest fee possible in a law firm, you may not get the best representation. We are by no means the least expensive law firm out there, and our speedy, efficient, and skilled work can cost more. However, you’ll know the total cost from the very beginning before we even start working on your case.
You may interview multiple law firms—and you should—before deciding which one best fits your needs. When interviewing attorneys, be sure to get a clear picture of what their rate structure includes. You may find that some flat rate fee lawyers offer flat fees for certain legal services but then charge an astronomical amount for extra out-of-pocket expenses.
At Edwards Family Law, our flat-rate billing fee arrangement already includes the following expenses:
Our law firm is too busy working on your case to find ways to nickel-and-dime you.
If you’re facing a complicated family law matter like divorce, child custody, paternity, or child support, you need a trustworthy, hard-working, experienced law firm to handle your case. Contact Edwards Family Law. We’ll discuss your family law case with you and develop customized flat fee arrangements that work for you.
Regina Edwards is the Owner and Managing Attorney of Edwards Family Law, an Atlanta family law and estate planning law firm she founded in 2005. With more than 21 years of experience practicing law, she is dedicated to representing clients in a wide range of legal matters, including divorce, child custody, child support, legitimation, wills, trusts, probate, and Medicaid planning.
Regina received her Juris Doctor from the Tulane School of Law and is a member of the State Bar of Georgia and the Atlanta Bar Association. She has received numerous accolades for her work, including being named a Rising Star by Super Lawyers for six years, as well as being named among the Pro Bono All Stars by the Georgia Bar Journal in 2019.
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