counseling/retainer

[antonin]

I have 50/50 of my 9-year old daughter.

I do not really have a case yet, as nothing has happened. However, I have issues I wish to discuss with an attorney that need to be addressed in preparation for any future troubles. I have located a decent family law attorney who only represents men and he has a good rep.

1. Would it be appropriate for me to ask if the attorney would bill be at his hourly rate for reading my documents and discussing them with me? I do not feel I should be required to pay a huge retainer, as there is no case or legal action to be taken yet.

Do attorneys sometimes do the hourly rate/counseling thing or do they consider any interaction a "case" and always ask for a retainer?

[4honor]

We used one when we first started out to gage what info we had vs. what was likely to be admissible and what we needed to focus on as far as issues. Cost us about $80, as the first 30 minutes was free.