Fees & Payments

Free New Client Informational and Intake Call

Contact DGVE law any time for a free, New Client Informational and Intake Call with our Client Services Coordinator to ask general questions, learn how we can help you, what you can expect from working with us, and how to get started. You can schedule a time to talk, email info@dgvelaw.com with your name, some basic information, and the best time and number to try calling you, or message, text, or call our office at 781-740-0848.

Helpful Information on Our Blog and Free Workshops

We also encourage you visit our blog for helpful information and to take advantage of one of our free, educational webinars or workshops.

Our firm has made a commitment to mindfully offering its pro bono (free, for the good of the public) legal services. We do not offer free attorney consultations regarding specific legal questions or concerns and merely contacting us does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Flat Fee for Initial, Private Attorney Consultation

If you decide to schedule a private legal consultation for specific, personalized, advice and counseling regarding your legal matter here in Massachusetts, please be prepared to provide background information for our review in preparation for your meeting and to pay a professional, legal consultation fee up front. During your meeting, Attorney Danielle G. Van Ess will listen to your concerns, answer your questions (including some you didn't even know you had), explain your options, and counsel and advise you personally.

Flat Fees for Estate Planning Legal Services

With estate planning, it is generally possible to clearly delineate the scope of services and to reasonably anticipate the time and costs necessary to complete the work for you.  Accordingly, after Danielle has provided you with sufficient information to make a well informed choice about how you wish to proceed, she will be able to identify the total flat fee for that work and your consultation fee will be credited toward your total flat fee, in a comprehensive engagement agreement, when you engage DGVE law for that additional legal work.

Hourly Fees for Probate and Trust Administration Legal Services

Probate and trust administration matters are notoriously difficult to predict. It is almost impossible to know at the outset exactly what it will take to move the matter through to completion for you. There are many unknowns and often also surprises in these personal, family matters, even when it otherwise seems very simple in the beginning. Often the very information you need to assess the scope of the matter is unavailable until after you have begun the process.

We tried to develop a way to make it possible to charge flat fees for these matters too, but after several experiments we decided to return to hourly billing for probate and trust administration matters.

The first step is to complete an intake worksheet and pay the flat fee to meet with the Attorney and the Paralegal for a paid consultation to review and discuss the matter and receive advice about what seem to be the likely next steps involved.

At the conclusion of that paid consultation, if you choose to retain us for further legal counseling and services, we will set an appropriate initial retainer based on the anticipated scope of services to enable us to begin working on the matter for you.

Our Attorney and Paralegal will then work closely together to guide you through the post-death probate or trust administration process, using the funds in your client trust account to pay both the necessary court filing and other costs, fees, and expenses for your matter as well as for payment for our professional services. We will keep you informed about the status of your matter throughout the process of working together and candidly discuss the fees and advise you about you can help keep the total fees involved down as much as possible.

Written Engagement Agreement with Clear Scope of Services, Working Relationship Expectations, and Billing Practices

When you choose to retain us for additional work after your initial legal consultation, we will review and explain the terms of and enter into an engagement agreement with you.  Our engagement agreement is a legal contract between us that clearly explains the work we will do for you and the flat fees or hourly billing rates and practices for that work so you know exactly what to expect regarding our services and our fees.

Payment Options

We accept payments via paper check or electronically by e-check/debit/electronic funds transfer, debit or credit card, or Venmo.

We appreciate the thought that goes into making a substantial investment in quality legal services and hope that these payment options help you get the legal services you need without delay.

You may make payments securely online by clicking on the appropriate payment link button below or by mailing or dropping off a paper check to our office.