Litigation Lawyers

Litigation lawyers in Surrey, working with clients to get excellent results.

Bookshelf filled with various hardcover legal tomes organized on wooden shelves.

Experience and Knowledge

To get you excellent results in the courtroom

 Frequently asked questions

Litigation generally

  • Typically, no. The vast majority of cases settle without the need for a full trial. It is however common to attend court for various procedural and interim applications. Speaking with your lawyer about the specific circumstances of your cases will help them gauge the likelihood of court appearances and trial.

  • No. Litigation is the methodical practice of advancing your claims through the court system. There is copious amounts of background work and limited time in court. Being prepared to go to court often results in fruitful negotiations.

  • The notice of family claim is the first step in family litigation. It gives notice of the claims being made by the person filing it. When you are served with such, you have 30 days to provide a filed response to notice of family claim. If you have been served it is prudent to immediately consult with a lawyer.

  • As long as you act reasonably, you will not have to pay your spouses legal fees. There is a mechanism where a court could order special costs in the amount of your spouse’s legal fees but that is a punitive measure for inappropriate actions. Specifics of costs and legal fees can be discussed with your lawyer.

  • Yes. Litigation often creates pressure to produce negotiations. It is almost a necessity to have both negotiations and litigation occurring simultaneously.

Working with a Lawyer

  • A retainer is your money that you provide to a lawyer that they will use to pay their account for work done for you. The purpose of the retainer is just like a deposit. It is to ensure that the lawyer gets paid for the work completed on your file. The retainer funds are held in the lawyer’s trust account under strict rules set out by the Law Society of British Columbia. If you ever wish to have your retainer returned to you, simply request its return. The lawyer will bill their outstanding time and apply the retainer funds. They will return the remainder to you.

  • The amount of the retainer payment will depend on the work to be done. Usually, an initial retainer is at least $2,000. If the parties are going to go to trial, the retainer can be much higher to reflect the amount of work the lawyer will have to do to prepare and attend trial. At your free initial consultation, the amount to be paid will be discussed with your lawyer.

  • Finding the right lawyer is hard and we suggest you meet with a couple. Consider lawyers and firms that have good reviews from most clients but be aware that good lawyers take hard cases and sometimes lose. A lawyer that you get along with is also important. In your initial meeting, consider the lawyer’s experience and the difficulty of your case. Be wary of lawyers that overpromise and do not point out any of the difficulties of your case. Perfect cases are like unicorns, they do not exist.

  • We recommend having a lawyer before you need one, so if you are looking at this website, you probably should be setting up a consultation. If you do not need a lawyer, we will tell you that and advise you of how to try and keep from needing one.

Affordability

  • This is the most commonly asked question in our consultations and the simple answer is: it depends. It is very unlikely that legal fees would be less than $1,500 and many clients spend less than $10,000. However, there are certainly files where a client will spend much more than this. It largely depends on the other party, the lawyer they choose, and the complexity of the case. Much like a teetertotter you only control what happens on your side. If one party is being unreasonable, it causes problems for the other. There are certainly cases that are more costly because of difficult legal issues, but the vast majority of cases with very high legal fees are as a result of one or both of the parties working at being difficult.

    There are many steps you can take that your lawyer will discuss with you about how to make financially appropriate decisions. We are big believers in trying to minimize legal fees and not seek unattainable objectives.

  • This can be very hard. If you have savings, this should be the first choice to use as payment for legal fees. If you do not, then borrowing from banks, friends, or family can bridge the gap until your larger assets can be made liquid. Talking to your lawyer about your budget is a good idea, it enables the lawyer to know your financial restrictions and adopt a plan that meets your financial needs.

    If you are a low-income earner and meet other specific criteria, it is possible you may qualify for legal aid through the Legal Services Society (LSS). If you do qualify, then you will be entitled to have some of your legal fees paid for through LSS with a legal aid qualified lawyer. Ankita Banerjee, of Recovery Family Law, does Legal Aid work as well as her private practice.

    There are also provisions under the Family Law Act, at section 89, that allow for an interim distribution of property to fund legal fees. If this is of interest to you, speak to a lawyer about the this possibility.

  • At Recovery Family Law in most instances, we will take a retainer at the outset. We will speak to you at your consultation about how we will bill your file in a way that works for you and your lawyer. It is important to speak with your lawyer about your financial realities to plan accordingly.

  • Being prepared and organized is the best thing you can do to minimize your legal fees. Listen to our advice and be ready to make the hard decisions. Your lawyer will also work with you to make sure we can be as efficient as possible.

Recent Court Decisions

  • Darnell Smith successfully set aside a consent order to have the father pay considerably more in child support for the past 5 years.

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  • Darnell Smith successfully obtained disclosure from the mother while having the mother’s application for similar disclosure dismissed. He further won costs payable for his client.

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  • Darnell Smith successfully imputed an income to the father of $65,000 beyond his reported taxable earnings. He limited the opposing party’s parenting time to essentially none. Finally, the judge awarded that the father would pay the mother her costs.

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  • Darnell Smith successfully prevented the claimant from being imputed an unreasonable income in order to pay reasonable child and spousal support.

  • Darnell Smith won at trial obtaining primary parenting time, and child support for his client while obtaining supervision for the opposing party’s parenting time.

Litigation Lawyers