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Fee disclosure

Initial Adoption Services Fee — $500

This is the written disclosure you receive before any money changes hands. It is published openly, before you apply, so that nothing about the cost of starting is a surprise.

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  1. 1Application
  2. 2Preliminary review
  3. 3Fee disclosure
  4. 4Engagement agreement
  5. 5Adoption services

What this fee is not

This fee does not reserve a child, secure a placement, create a match, or pay any part of an expectant parent’s expenses. No payment to this firm at any stage buys, reserves or holds a child, and no amount of money can. Anyone who tells you otherwise — here or anywhere else — is describing something unlawful.

On this page

  1. Disclosure summary
  2. What the fee pays for
  3. What it does not guarantee
  4. Refund policy
  5. Credit toward later fees
  6. How the money is held
  7. How to pay
  8. Costs that are separate
  9. Accounting to the court
  10. Your right to stop

Questions before you pay anything?
(213) 555-0140
contact@prescottsfamilylaw.com

Disclosure summary

Name of the fee Initial Adoption Services Fee
Amount$500 (US dollars)
Who receives it Prescott's Family Law, APC, trading as Prescott’s Family Law
When it is payable Only after your application has been reviewed, we have confirmed we are able to act for you, and you have received this disclosure and the written engagement terms
What it buys Defined legal work, listed below, ending in a written Preliminary Adoption Assessment
Refundable?The $500 fee is held in client trust until the written assessment is delivered; fully creditable against full legal representation if engaged within 90 days.
Credited toward later fees? Yes — credited in full against the flat fee for your matter if you engage us within 90 days
Does it guarantee placement? No. See below.

What the fee pays for

The $500 buys a specific piece of legal work with a specific deliverable. It is not a deposit, a holding fee, or a charge for being allowed to talk to us — consultations are free and always will be.

  1. A conflicts check and file opening. We confirm we can act for you without a conflict of interest, and open a matter file.
  2. Review of your application and supporting information by an attorney, not by an intake clerk.
  3. A written Preliminary Adoption Assessment covering: which adoption route or routes are available to you under California law; whether you appear to meet the statutory eligibility requirements; who must consent or be given notice in your situation; the realistic timeline; and an estimate of the total cost including third-party costs.
  4. A document and home-study roadmap listing every document your route requires, who issues it, and how long each typically takes.
  5. A meeting with the attorney of up to 45 minutes to go through the assessment and answer your questions.
  6. A written fee proposal for the full matter, so you can decide whether to proceed with your eyes open.

The assessment is delivered within 3 business days of payment and of our receiving everything we have asked you for.

What it does not guarantee

Paying this fee does not, and cannot:

  • guarantee that you will be matched with a child;
  • guarantee that any adoption will be completed;
  • reserve, secure, hold or promise any particular child;
  • approve you to adopt — that determination is made by a licensed home study provider and, ultimately, by the court, not by this firm;
  • guarantee approval of a home study or of background screening;
  • guarantee any particular timeline, cost or court outcome.

We will tell you honestly if we think your plan is unlikely to succeed. That is part of what you are paying for, and it is worth more than encouragement.

Refund policy

The $500 fee is deposited directly into the firm's IOLTA client trust account and remains your property until the written Preliminary Adoption Assessment is delivered. If you cancel prior to assessment delivery, the unused balance is refunded in full.

Drafting note for the firm. This clause must be written to match the professional conduct rules of the State Bar of California on advance fees. Under California Rules of Professional Conduct rule 1.5(e), a flat fee may be treated as “earned on receipt” only if the client agrees in writing after being told that the fee will not be held in trust, that they may discharge the firm at any time, and that they may be entitled to a refund of part of it; rule 1.16(e)(2) requires any unearned part to be refunded when the representation ends. Business and Professions Code § 6148 also requires a written fee agreement where total fees will exceed $1,000. Do not publish a blanket “non-refundable” clause without confirming it is permitted.

Credit toward later fees

If you engage us for the adoption itself within 90 days of the assessment, the full $500 is credited against the flat fee for your matter. In practice, that means the assessment costs you nothing if you go ahead. Fee ranges for each adoption route are published on the fees page.

How the money is held

All initial service fees and retainers are held in an IOLTA Client Trust Account in accordance with State Bar of California Rule 1.15.

Drafting note for the firm. State the actual arrangement: whether the fee is deposited into the firm’s client trust account (IOLTA) and withdrawn only as it is earned, or treated another way permitted by the State Bar of California. Use a payment processor that supports trust accounting and does not deduct its processing fees from the trust balance.

How to pay

You will be sent a payment link by email after you receive the engagement terms. Payments are processed by LawPay on their own secure page. We never ask for card or bank details by email, by telephone or through a form on this website. If you receive a message that appears to come from us and asks for those details, do not respond — call us on (213) 555-0140 and check.

Accepted methods: Credit card, debit card, eCheck/ACH, wire transfer, and certified check. Any card processing surcharge is disclosed before you confirm payment.

Costs that are separate from this fee

The $500 covers our work only. It does not include court filing fees, home study fees, background check and fingerprinting fees, publication costs, agency placement fees, guardian ad litem fees, certified copies, or any expenses permitted by California law to be paid on behalf of an expectant parent. Wherever possible you pay those providers directly, so nothing is marked up.

Accounting to the court

In most adoptions, California requires a sworn accounting of everything paid in connection with the adoption to be filed with the court before the decree is entered. We keep that accounting from the first day and file it for you. Fees paid to this firm appear in it. This is a protection for you as much as for the child.

Your right to stop

You may end the engagement at any time and for any reason. If you do, we will account for the work actually done, return anything not yet earned in accordance with the refund policy above and the rules of the State Bar of California, and release your file to you or to your new attorney. You do not have to explain why.

Starting out

Two ways in, and neither one costs you anything.

Book a free consultation if you have questions and want to talk them through. Submit the preliminary adoption application if you are ready for us to assess your situation formally. There is no fee to do either, and neither one commits you to anything.

Start the application Book a free consultation