The True Cost of An Attorney

There are a number of factors that can influence how much money you or your company might have to spend the next time you need an attorney. According to one study, company legal departments can spend anywhere from $245,000 to $320 million in legal fees annually. So why are attorney fees so high? There are a number of reasons. One reason relates to the amount of money attorneys spend while earning their law degrees. On top of their four year college degrees, attorneys also attend three years of law school. For individuals working toward a career as an attorney, tuition can cost anywhere from $119,295 to $174,327 depending on whether they attend an in-state, out-of-state, or private school. Another reason relates to the time and energy that an attorney typically spends working on complex corporate cases (many of which take three years or more to resolve). In the following infographic, we’ll outline additional factors that influence the costs of hiring an attorney, what types of services small businesses typically hire attorneys for, and how costs vary depending on where you are in the country.