What to charge for court appearance?

[Lee Lansford]

'What to charge for court appearance?' should have the same answer as the question 'How much to pay for a car?' "It depends...", doesn't it?

I've seen instances where the appraiser should have been embarrassed to accept any fee and if the client paid the appraiser a dollar, the client paid too much.

 

[PL1957]

It is my opinion that one has to be realistic and your $250/hour fee is equivalent to $10,000 per week at a 40 hour week. It would be hard to justify any residential appraiser yet alone a commercial appraiser being worth $10,000/week.

When there are millions riding on a valuation outcome, $250 per hour is peanuts. Once you have established yourself as a credible witness who will hold up under a difficult cross, you can pretty much charge what you want. BTW, the more you charge, the more seriously "your" attorney will take your suggestions as to what you should be asked.

 

[PL1957]

You will see. If subpoenaed as a witness of "fact" they will not pay you your desired fee--they don't have to and probably won't. If they want to have you as an "expert" witness, they will have to pay. There is a world of difference between the two.

The easiest way to turn a subpoena into an expert witness assignment is to remind the subpoenaing attorney that, unless you're getting paid as an expert, you aren't going to look at the file or the report until you are on the stand. Since you've done x number of reports since then, you probably wont remember diddly about the piece of paper they give you to look at, even to the point of remembering whether the value is correct, or even if you saw the property in question. This will really tick the judge off, until you point out that you offered to review everything at your usual hourly rate, but the attorney declined because he was too cheap. Then the judge gets ticked at the attorney for wasting everyone's time.

 

[Lee Lansford]

Nice try but won't work if you are subpoenaed.

It would 'work' with the 'letter of engagement' that my clients sign.

 

[PL1957]

It would 'work' with the 'letter of engagement' that my clients sign.

An engagement letter is a contract, subject to enforcement action governed by contract law. A subpoena is a court demand, subject to enforcement by the police showing up at your door. Slightly different ...

 

[Lee Lansford]

An engagement letter is a contract, subject to enforcement action governed by contract law. A subpoena is a court demand, subject to enforcement by the police showing up at your door. Slightly different ...

Well, I'll be darned! I learn something new every day!

If the subpoena that I receive is related to an assignment where I have a letter of engagement with my client, this contingency (and my fee) has been addressed in the 'letter'.

 

[PL1957]

Well, I'll be darned! I learn something new every day!

If the subpoena that I receive is related to an assignment where I have a letter of engagement with my client, this contingency (and my fee) has been addressed in the 'letter'.

Only if the engaging party is the one that is subpoenaing you. I've received subpoenas from parties that weren't involved in the engagement. They couln't care less about any engagement letter.

 

[rcsone]

...In my last "expert" testimony, I charged $600 for a routine residential. The client paid me by check through her attorney and I cashed it prior to the 10 minute later court appearance. I monetarily trusted neither, but I liked both of them. Also I only agreed to attend that one afternoon. It ended up being a two hour job which put me in the ranks of the fortunate from a "paid" standpoint....best to all.........rs

 

[Lee Lansford]

Only if the engaging party is the one that is subpoenaing you. I've received subpoenas from parties that weren't involved in the engagement. They couln't care less about any engagement letter.

Your observation is, of course, correct in that those not a party to the contract don't have to abide by it.

However, if one's client has agreed to pay for the appraiser's performance when the appraiser is required (i.e., by force of law) to appear--and the requirement is directly linked to the intended use of the appraisal--we have a horse of a completely different color.

 

[PropertyEconomics]

Only if the engaging party is the one that is subpoenaing you. I've received subpoenas from parties that weren't involved in the engagement. They couln't care less about any engagement letter.

And frankly I couldnt care less about their subpoenas either. They are not officers of the court and they cannot compel you to appear ... the court can ... but the opposing attorney who is not my client .. no so much. We can come to an agreement I am appearing as an expert or they might have a tough time finding me on vacation to serve me .... Im just sayin.