Our Fees

How we charge

Our first consultation is a paid consultation. That’s by design, because from the moment we take your individual circumstances into consideration and are giving you advice, that advice carries professional responsibility. We would rather make that first hour genuinely useful for you than have it be a general sales pitch that doesn’t get you anywhere specific.

After that, most estate planning work is quoted as a fixed fee, so you know what it costs before you commit. Genuinely complex or unusual plans are the exception, and we’ll tell you if yours is one.

Estate administration and disputes work differently. Nobody can know at the outset exactly how much work an estate or a dispute will require, so this work is charged for the time it takes. Before we start, we give you a detailed written estimate.

Value, not price

We aren’t the cheapest option in Queensland and we don’t try to be. A general practice firm that does a little of everything will usually charge less than we do. A large firm, or one with accredited specialists, will usually charge more. We sit between the two on purpose. You get the depth of a practice that does nothing but succession law, without the overheads of a large one.

What we don’t do

We don’t act on a no-win, no-fee basis, and we aren’t able to take on pro bono work.

That’s a resourcing decision rather than a matter of principle. We’re a small firm, and neither model is one that we can carry sustainably. If we could, we would – because access to legal help matters, and we’re well aware that cost can put it out of reach for people who need it.

So we give away what we know instead. Danielle publishes educational blog posts regularly, and there’s a substantial library of free material on our YouTube channel, our podcast and our social channels, covering the questions we get asked most. That information is freely available for everyone, whether you ever become a client or not.

If funding is an issue

Where cost is an obstacle, there can be options worth discussing.

We’re an accredited firm with JustFund, an Australian lender that funds some estate matters against the assets of the estate itself, with repayment when the estate is distributed. It’s most often relevant in estate administration, where costs need to be met before an estate can be finalised, or where spending now would improve what beneficiaries eventually receive.

JustFund has strict criteria and it won’t suit every matter or every person. JustFund isn’t a litigation funder. But if cost is what’s standing in your way, call us and we’ll tell you honestly whether it’s worth exploring.