Legal Question in Family Law in Florida
Response to response: Paralegal fees
Ok... I understand the right to charge what you want but this appears to be a case of someone taking advantage of another during a time of great emotional distress. Although legal from what you quote, I just think it's unscrupulous and feeds into the bad reputation of all lawyers :-(. I've also noticed that phone calls obviously made by the firm's secretary (scheduling appointments) have also been charged at the lawyer's hourly rate....sad :-(
Is it common practice to be charged for Paralegal services at the same hourly rate as the lawyer?
Brent Rose, Attorney at Law
Re: Paralegal rates
No, they are usually much cheaper, but there is no law that forbids them from charging what they want, except for bankruptcy cases.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Response to response: Paralegal fees
I didn't completely understand you before. I though you meant independent paralegals. Of course, it doesn't change my answer. Law firms are permitted to charge whatever they want for their paralegals, but I would say it's very unusual to pay as much for a paralegal in a law firm as a lawyer in that same firm.
Most law firms charge between $85 and $200 per hour for paralegals, whereas lawyers can range from $150 an hour for a new, small-town lawyer to $1,000 per hour for an experienced lawyer in Miami.
If you're paying more than $150 an hour for your paralegal or more than $350 an hour for your lawyer, you may consider looking around a bit.
I agree with you that a law firm should not bill as much for their paralegals as for their lawyers. It's not illegal, but it does look bad.
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