How much did a lawyer quote me to handle my domestic violence case?

Quick note before you read: this is my own story and general information, not legal advice. I'm not a lawyer, every case is different, and nothing here can tell you what will happen in yours.

One of the main reasons I started The First Hearing is that it’s incredibly difficult to hire the right private attorney as a criminal defendant. By “right,” I mean someone with a proven track record who also fits within a budget you can actually afford.

Based on my 10-month legal battle as a pro se (self-represented) defendant, during which I spent hundreds of hours doing legal research, I witnessed firsthand that this is one industry that lacks transparency and adequate guidance for criminal defendants. You’re often left with two choices: spend almost $0 with a public defender and receive very limited legal assistance, or spend around $10,000 on a private attorney, where you still may not get much clarity or transparency about what’s happening in your own case.

I’ll write more blog posts about this topic in the future. For today, I just want to share a quote I received from a private attorney to handle my misdemeanor domestic violence case.

Obviously, a private attorney’s fee varies widely depending on multiple factors, such as the complexity of the case, the location, and so on. So treat this only as a reference. This quote came from a criminal defense attorney in Santa Clara County, California.

$7,000

This is the quote I received to handle my misdemeanor domestic violence case.

For this fee, the attorney said he would attempt to negotiate the charge down from PC 273.5(a) – Corporal Injury to a Spouse/Cohabitant (misdemeanor) to PC 415 – Disturbing the Peace (misdemeanor).

I emphasize misdemeanor here because both PC 273.5(a) and PC 415 can be charged as either misdemeanors or felonies, depending on the severity of the case.

In layman’s terms, this is basically saying:

The prosecutor says you physically abused the other person. Because the severity was relatively low, they charged it as a misdemeanor rather than a felony. But it’s still a physical abuse charge. My goal is to negotiate with the prosecutor to reduce that charge to disturbing the peace instead.

So what’s disturbing the peace?

It’s generally not considered a domestic violence offense. It’s the kind of charge a prosecutor might file when, for example, your neighbor complains that you’re making excessive noise, or when you challenge someone to fight (without actually fighting). In other words, it’s typically used for conduct that disturbs or offends someone without involving actual physical violence.

The attorney also said I could pay in installments. I don’t remember the exact payment schedule, but it was something like $3,000 upfront, followed by two $2,000 payments over the next couple of months.

I also got the impression that the payment plan itself was negotiable. For example, you might be able to spread it over five smaller payments if you asked.

$10,000

The attorney said this would be his fee if my case had been charged as a felony. I guess it’s a nice, round number. 🙂

In that scenario, his goal would be to negotiate the PC 273.5(a) felony down to a PC 273.5(a) misdemeanor. In other words, the charge would stay under the same Penal Code section, but it would be reduced from a felony to a misdemeanor.

Since my case was never charged as a felony, we didn’t spend much time discussing this scenario.

A side note. While we were talking about the fee, he once said that he is not charging a lot compared to what others charge and indicated that his fee may be even on the lower side of the spectrum.

Now some readers might wonder: What’s the difference between a misdemeanor and a felony?

Ask ChatGPT. 🙂

Very generally speaking, a misdemeanor is a lower-level criminal offense. Examples can include certain domestic violence cases involving relatively minor injuries or other less serious crimes. In many situations, a misdemeanor is less likely to become a major obstacle for private-sector employment or apartment rentals, especially if you have a reasonable explanation and if the employer or landlord even reviews misdemeanor records.

A felony, on the other hand, is a much more serious offense. Felonies cover a wide range of crimes—from assaults that cause significant injuries to homicide and many other serious offenses. A felony conviction is far more likely to create long-term obstacles for employment, professional licensing, housing, and other aspects of life.