Salaries of Divorce Lawyers
According to Divorce Lawyer Source, nearly half of all marriages in the United States end in divorce. With the rates of divorce on the rise, couples seeking to split from marriage will seek a divorce lawyer or family attorney. Divorce or family law is governed by individual states, meaning divorce laws in Mississippi may not apply in California or Oregon. Divorce lawyers negotiate common issues such as alimony, spousal support, custody and property division.
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Fee Arrangements
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There are four methods of charging clients. Divorce lawyers have four primary methods of charging clients, according to clearleadinc.com, including fixed fee, hourly, retainer and continent fees. Fixed fees are set prices for a lawyer's services, while hourly fees are accumulated per hour. A retainer is an agreement in which the client gives a down payment for legal services, and a contingent fee is paid only when the lawyer is successful in his negotiations of compensation for his client.
Average Salaries
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Some lawyers bill up to $600 per hour. According to payscale.com, the median salary range for divorce lawyers is $48,000 to $80,000 per year, but degreedirectory.org cites a study from 2009 showing the average divorce lawyer earns approximately $96,000 per year. Regardless, these numbers are considered being on the low end, and three of America's top divorce lawyers wouldn't get out of bed for those numbers. Forbes magazine recently published a list of the highest-paid divorce lawyers in the country, with some billing $600 per hour.
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Daniel Jaffe
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Daniel Jaffe is a partner and founder of Jaffe and Clemens based in Beverly Hills, California. Jaffe graduated from the UCLA School of Law in 1962. According to Forbes magazine, Jaffe has represented the wives of media titan Rupert Murdoch and director James Cameron. Jaffe reportedly earns an annual salary of approximately $1.5 million.
Sorrell Trope
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Sorrell Trope is the second-highest paid divorce lawyer in the United States, as reported by Forbes magazine. Trope founded Los Angeles-based Trope and Trope in 1949. Trope charges his clients an average hourly fee of $650 per hour, billing some 1,600 hours, and has a roster of famous Hollywood clients like Nicolas Cage. His salary is approximately $2 million per year.
Raoul Felder
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The highest-paid divorce lawyer in the United States is New York-based attorney Raoul Felder. Mr. Felder is listed in New York Law Magazine's Top 100 Lawyers in America, billing an average of $600 per hour to his famous clients like former Mayor Rudy Giuliani. With some 3,000 billable hours per year, Raoul Felder rakes in an average salary of $3 million per year, and when asked about his competition, he says: "They're jealous".
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