Criminal charges weigh heavily on you due to financial implications that arise. When engaging a lawyer or a law firm, the first questions that arises is if you can afford attorney’s fees. Paying for a lawyer can be expensive, but there are several options available to help you pay your legal fees. Selecting the right lawyer can affect the case outcome, so hire a lawyer experienced in handling legal issues faced by you. Before hiring a lawyer or a law firm, understand the fees charged, and how your lawyers compute them, to understand how much services will cost. As your case unfolds, legal charges may increase beyond what was anticipated. When considering legal representation, weigh the profile of the lawyer being hired in terms of experience, skills, and legal fees. In most cases, legal fees supersede other factors when choosing the defense attorney to represent you. An individual’s financial situation should not hinder them from finding the best option or legal recourse available. Here are some ways to finance your defense attorney fees:
Retirement Fund:
If you have a 401(k) with your place of employment or an IRA (that is Independent Retirement Arrangement), you can use a portion of the money to pay the fees of your defense attorney. However, IRA institutions might demand a hefty tax or impose a fine for IRA fund withdrawal. A loan from your own 401k account is a better option as there are no high-interest charges being levied.
Selling your Car:
Consider selling your car to finance legal fees. If convicted, you will be jailed, and cannot use the car. Make an arrangement with your defense attorney as some law firms accept cars as collateral; do explore that option.
Friends or Family Members:
Whenever in trouble, close family members and friends, are approached to raise legal fees for a lawsuit. This is the best option to finance legal fees. To divide up legal fees among several friends and family members, use the GroupFund Legal application as the app takes care of all emailing and cost-splitting for you and your attorney, while you and your attorney focus on the case.
Credit Card:
You can use credit cards to settle defense attorney fees. Many lawyers are open to accepting credit card payments, so use credit cards to fund legal action. With high interest rates for credit cards, remember to pay your monthly statement before the amount skyrockets.
Take Salary Advance:
If you are employed, your employer may give an advance to settle legal expenses. You can repay the advance with your next paycheck. Never let your case stall if your employer can sanction advance salary payment.
Personal Loan:
The first option for financing your legal fees is avail of personal loans. This is extremely helpful when you plan to pay it back in monthly instalments over a predetermined period of time, or add the fees to amount due, on your mortgage loan.
Legal Payment Plans:
In some instances, your lawyer can set up payment plans to pay for your case. Lawyers often accommodate payment plans, and you could confidently ask them about this option.
Crowdfunding:
A new financing option is crowdfunding and popular platforms like Kickstarter or Gofundme, helping search for funding legal cases. For public causes legal action against negligent companies or for environmental preservation, a confidential solution is available called GroupFund Legal.