When a legal problem is encountered or a lawsuit process is to be initiated, a lawyer is consulted to obtain professional legal support. At this point, one of the issues that clients are most curious about is how the attorney’s fee is determined. The attorney’s fee is the price paid in return for the legal services provided by the lawyer and its determination is subject to certain legal rules and customs. The attorney’s fee generally consists of two main elements, namely “contractual attorney’s fee” and “legal attorney’s fee”.
Legal Framework: Basis for Attorneys’ Fees
The legal basis of the attorney’s fee is the Attorneyship Law No. 1136. Article 164 of the Law sets out the basic rules for the determination of attorneys’ fees. In addition, the “Lawyers’ Minimum Fee Tariff” published annually in the Official Gazette by the Union of Turkish Bar Associations (TBB) is an important document that sets the minimum fees that lawyers can charge.
Law on Attorneys – Article 164: Attorneys’ Fees
Attorney’s fee refers to the amount or value of the legal assistance rendered by the attorney. The value of the action or judgement or a certain percentage of the money, not exceeding twenty-five per cent, may be agreed as an attorney’s fee. … No attorney fee may be agreed below the minimum fee tariff for attorneys.
Types of Attorney Fees
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Contractual Attorney Fee (Fee between Client and Attorney): This fee is the fee freely agreed between the lawyer and the client for the work or case to be performed. It is advisable to conclude this agreement with a written “retainer agreement”. The fee may be a fixed amount (fixed fee) or a certain percentage of the value of the case (proportional fee). According to the Attorneyship Law, the agreed percentage of the value of the case cannot exceed 25%. The most important rule is that the agreed fee cannot be less than the amount specified in the TBB Attorney Minimum Fee Tariff for that matter.
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Legal Attorney Fee (Counter Party Attorney Fee): This fee is the fee that the court orders the losing party to pay to the winning party’s lawyer at the end of the case. The amount of this fee is determined according to the TBB Attorney Minimum Fee Tariff. The legal attorney fee belongs directly to the lawyer as a reward for the lawyer’s labour and is completely separate from the contractual attorney fee paid by the client to the lawyer. In other words, the client who wins the case receives both the legal attorney’s fee from the other party for his/her lawyer and pays the contractual attorney’s fee to his/her own lawyer.
Factors Affecting Attorney Fees
The following factors are taken into consideration when determining the contractual attorney fee between the lawyer and the client
- The nature and complexity of the case or matter: The fee to be charged for a simple enforcement proceeding and a complex commercial or criminal case will be different.
- Labour and Time to be spent: How long the case will last, how many hearings will be held, how much research and preparation will be required.
- Value of the Case: Especially in cases related to assets, the monetary value of the case directly affects the fee.
- Seniority, Expertise and Experience of the Lawyer: The fee of a lawyer who is specialised and experienced in a certain field may be higher than that of a lawyer who is a newcomer to the profession.
- Location: Fees in big cities may differ from those in small cities.
The attorney’s fee is the remuneration for the legal services provided by the lawyer and is subject to the Law on Attorneys and the Lawyers’ Minimum Fee Tariff of the Union of Chambers of Turkey. The “contractual attorney fee” paid by the client to the lawyer and the “legal attorney fee” paid by the losing party to the lawyer of the winning party at the end of the lawsuit are different from each other. The contractual attorney fee is freely agreed between the lawyer and the client, but cannot be below the minimum tariff. Many factors such as the nature of the case, the labour to be spent, the value of the case and the experience of the lawyer play a role in determining the fee. Before starting a legal process, it is the healthiest way to discuss the fee issue clearly with the lawyer and, if possible, to make a written fee agreement in order to prevent future disputes.