Clients often have very specific questions regarding family law costs, such as:  “Can I get my ex to pay for my legal fees?”. The answer to this question is not a simple yes or no. You should never assume that you will be awarded your full legal costs at the conclusion of your family law case, but when possible the family lawyers at Lenehan Musgrave LLP advocate for this.

In family law, this concept is called “Costs”. The Court can award Costs be paid by one party to the other in some circumstances. The Court has the discretion to do so, but they also can opt not to. The potential of having Costs imposed is meant to promote settlement and caution people from making claims in Court unnecessarily. Costs are also used to prevent people from using Court time and resources unnecessarily and to discourage people from increasing the opposing party’s legal fees intentionally. An example of increasing the opposing party’s legal costs would be failing to disclose required information or failing to be prepared for Court resulting in delays.

What the Court considers to determine family law Costs

One of many things that the Court will consider in a Costs award is whether the parties exchanged any settlement offers prior to the trial. This is relevant because failure to accept a reasonable offer to settle can result in Costs consequences at the conclusion of a trial. Costs are awarded by Courts using a set of rules and a scale of payment ranges that take into consideration the complexity of your case and encourage parties to focus on early resolution.

Often in family law, the Court will award Costs be paid by the unsuccessful party to the successful party. This does not always mean a complete coverage of all legal fees, but it can result in a substantial contribution to the successful party’s reasonable legal fees. It can sometimes be  difficult to determine who is the successful party, because family law decisions can favour one party on one issue and the other party on another issue.  We refer to such decisions as “mixed success” decisions for costs purposes.

Resolutions to your family law disputes

The family lawyers at Lenehan Musgrave LLP strive for reasonable resolutions to your legal disputes. When the cost of litigation can be avoided, our lawyers seek to do so. However, when Court time is required, our experienced family lawyers are well prepared to represent you. This includes advocating for Costs to be awarded to our clients. Our team at Lenehan Musgrave LLP was recently able to obtain a Cost award of over $12,000.00 be paid by the opposing party.

It is vital to get legal advice on the topic of Costs early in your family matter to avoid making mistakes that could cost you later on. We strive to advocate for our clients throughout the entire process, and to seek compensation for our clients’ legal fees whenever possible. If you have questions about costs in family law, including potential consequences for you or your spouse, book an initial consultation with one of Lenehan Musgrave’s family lawyers today.