What Are Lemon Law Attorneys?
Lemon Law Attorneys are individuals who specialize in helping consumers whose vehicle is defective. That means it’s more than just broken down on the side of the road, it has a defect that prevents it from providing basic utility. Lemon Laws may vary by state, but the principles remain mostly the same. On the most basic level, a Lemon Law Attorney’s job is to help recognize whether a vehicle you have purchased is defective and then right the financial wrong that was done at purchase. For example, if you ordered a truck, and you received a car, the cost to correct that error falls within Lemon Law.
Keeping with the example of defective vehicles, an attorney having expertise in this area can call the dealership or manufacturer to order the correct part for your vehicle. If you have experienced repeated issues with your vehicle over time within the warranty period, Lemon Law Attorneys can help with that too . IKEA furniture goes together with the help of an Allen wrench. Your engine goes together with nuts and bolts secured by a nut-wrench combination.
Lemon Law Attorneys monitor the state of the law regarding types of defects consumers are facing. Whether your car shakes when you turn it on, your stereo only plays when it wants or your entire dashboard was changed twice only for you to find it has cracked paint, attorneys in this area can help make the case that all of these damages were terms of sale and originally manufactured defective.
Part of how Lemon Law Attorneys accomplish this goal is by changing the perspective of the manufacturer in question. Manufacturing is a business with the goal to sell new products for profit. Lemon Law turns that transactional relationship upside down and requires manufacturers to think about the implications to the consumer. In this way, it is a chance to give manufacturers a reality check with regards to the cost of subpar products.
Average Cost of Hiring a Lemon Law Attorney
A few different pricing models are used for lemon law attorneys. Below are the most common.
Contingency Fees
A popular pricing model for lemon law cases is the contingency fee agreement. This means that the attorney fee comes in to play only if there is a recovery – whether that be money damages, restitution, or a vehicle or piece of equipment that is returned to you. In other words, you don’t have to pay the attorney anything to take action on your behalf. Payment only happens once there is a monetary recovery or settlement.
When dealing with consumer cases – like lemon law claims – the majority of lemon law attorneys in California work on a contingency fee basis (unless you are seeking attorney fees and costs that you are entitled to under the lemon law statutes). If a lemon law attorney is charging you fees upfront, before taking any action on your behalf, that is not standard for lemon law. It doesn’t necessarily mean that the attorney isn’t worth the price or that they are a "bad" lawyer. But it is not unusual to see lemon law attorneys who are willing to take your case on a contingency basis.
Let’s say that you have a substantial lemon law claim – whether it is for a defective car, truck, motorcycle, ATV, RV, boat or one of the other vehicles or pieces of equipment covered under the lemon law statutes or federal Magnuson Moss Warranty Act. Perhaps your claim is worth $25,000 or $50,000 or thereabouts. The contingency fee on a $50,000 claim might be $10,000 to $15,000 depending upon the attorney and the circumstances of your case. On the other hand, the contingency fee on a $50,000 claim might be $50,000 (and not the $30,000 that might be expected). Why? Well, perhaps you have a claim that a lot of other attorneys are not interested in. Perhaps you have spoken with several other attorneys who do not want to take your case because they believe it’s too much work or difficult to pursue. Maybe we are talking about a vehicle or vehicle equipment that is being pursued against a company that has never had to pay a judgement or adverse settlement. Or, you have a lemon law vehicle that has a lot of minor defects and the manufacturer is refusing to pay. In other words, the circumstances and the business of lemon law work vary from case to case and attorney to attorney. One of the key things that is important to look at when hiring a lemon law attorney is to make sure that the attorney is actually willing to take your case. Will the attorney be representing you in court? Will they appear on paper to litigate your case? Or will they be farm out to an associate who will be handling the case for them? More about this below.
Hourly Rates
Most lemon law attorneys do not charge an hourly rate – at least not an hourly rate that is billed at an hourly fee to you. In other words, they are not charging a monthly or hourly fee in relation to the work they are doing. Again, many lemon law attorneys are working on a contingent fee basis, meaning that they are only charging their attorney fees and costs when they are successful in obtaining a recovery for you. Note, this is not the same as obtaining an award in a commercial arbitration proceeding. On a case by case basis, attorney fees and costs can be awarded by the Court after the completion of the case. Some lemon law attorneys choose to take cases on a flat fee basis when putting an arbitration packet together for a client. So, if a lemon law attorney is willing to take your case on a flat rate – for example, a $500 arbitration packet fee for a $50,000 lemon law claim – it doesn’t mean that the lemon law attorney is "bad" or "unethical." It may just be a case that the attorney believes that he or she can put together the packet without very much time. When the contract states that the attorney fees and costs are to be paid at the conclusion of a case, unless the lemon law attorney is exceptionally organized and fast, putting together a lemon law arbitration packet for a $50,000 case will likely take quite a bit of time. And, even $500 is cheap for an entire lemon law case. As mentioned above, when you are bringing a lemon law case against a large company that deals with consumer products, many lemon law cases litigation are worth $100,000 or more, and can easily exceed that amount depending upon the type of case and the extent of the damages.
Retainer Fees
Almost all lemon law attorneys require a retainer fee for lemon law cases. This means that the attorney collects money upfront before doing any work. A retainer is usually anywhere from $300 to $1,000. Some lemon law attorneys may collect more as a retainer depending upon the size and scope of the case. The retainer is money that is debited as the attorney does work on your case. In other words, your retainer is subtracted from your bill as the attorney is working on your case. For example, let’s say that you are up $500 on your retainer. Your lemon law attorney spends 2 hours working on your lemon law case that day. Two hours at $300 per hour would be $600. So, after the second hour, you are "over budget by $100 or so." This means that there is no way your lemon law attorney could send you any check that day (though a retainer would certainly be possible under other circumstances). On the other hand, if your lemon law attorney was down $500 on your retainer, and then started a lemon law case for you. Two hours later, after sending off an 8 page arbitration demand, the lemon law attorney would be down $100. So, under those circumstances, if you called the attorney’s office, you would be able to pick up a check for $400 (the $500 retainer, less the $100 in legal fees that were earned that day).
Cost Factors for Lemon Law Attorneys
The cost to a consumer hiring a lemon law attorney is typically nil. Consumers do not pay to hire a lemon law attorney, but attorneys will take a percentage of the vehicle’s buyback price once the case settles or they will take a small percentage of that money out of the settlement proceeds as a legal fee. Some lemon law attorneys are paid by the automakers on hourly basis rates for time and efforts spent during the lemon law process. By the hour is typically more commonly charged with attorneys who represent the automaker and are hired by the manufacturer regarding lemon law cases and claims under warranty issues that only affect their client’s vehicles. However, some lemon law attorneys charge the consumer at a flat fee, or flat rate, that is agreed upon prior to signing a retainer and agreeing to the lemon law representation agreement. It is best to never sign an attorney retainer without first reviewing your obligations under the agreement and the terms under which you may be charged.
A lemon law attorney’s experience and geographical area of practice may influence how much you have to pay to hire your lemon law attorney. Some lemon law attorneys may have national practices and accept lemon law cases from all over the United States, whereas other lemon law attorneys may have a preferred area of practice or city in which their office is located that is their major center of business.
Cost of Lemon Law Attorneys vs. Benefits
The benefits of hiring a lemon law attorney extend beyond alleviating the stress of dealing with a defective vehicle and its manufacturer. There are a variety of financial and legal advantages that lemon law attorneys can afford to their clients, which sometimes even surpass the benefit of getting a free replacement car from the manufacturer.
First and foremost, if you hire an attorney, chances are good to excellent that you will not have to pay out-of-pocket attorney’s fees. Lemon law attorneys work on a contingency fee basis, which means that they will assume the risk and front the cost of attorney’s fees. And if your case is a lemon case, you will likely end up getting paid $0 in attorney’s fees, and you will have a four- or five-figure, or even six-figure check coming your way instead.
If it turns out that your vehicle is a lemon, it should be out of service for at least 30 days. You will most likely be without your vehicle during this time. If your car needs to be repaired as part of your lemon law case, your lemon law attorney will get a rental car for you. The car, truck, SUV, motorcycle, van, or truck will be covered under the lemon law attorney’s expenses.
Otherwise, if your olive green diesel-powered 18-wheeler turns out to be a lemon, your lemon law attorney will make sure you get compensated for the car you had to give up for the life of the case . If you need a van for transporting your family, a race car for transporting your buttocks faster than gravity permits, or a luxury SUV for hauling around your eleven-story stereo equipment, your lawyer will make sure you get a free replacement car of the same make and model as yours, with all the same options, accommodations, factory-installed accessories, and paint job included.
Say your springtime Ford F-150 reimbursement check is for $10,000. Your lemon law attorney will make sure that you get that exact amount and, often, upwards of $5,000 just for putting together the claim. Either amount is often more than the car’s value at trade-in or private sale.
If you take on the manufacturer and its team of attorneys yourself, you may win your case, but you may have to sign off on an arbitration award or settlement within a week of receiving it. But if you have a lemon law attorney, your settlement or arbitration award will be subject to the lemon law statute of your state. The manufacturer may not force you to sign off on a lemon law claim settlement if you believe you deserve more. Your lemon law attorney will let you know whether a settlement or arbitration award is fair or whether it’s worth the fight.
Affordable Lemon Law Attorneys: Where to Look
While the $5000+ retainer fee that some lemon law attorneys demand may be standard in some areas, for others, seeking a less expensive attorney might be the best play. Fortunately, there are a plethora of low-cost options available everywhere.
In most situations, taking your case to the lemon law attorney closest to you will result in a low fee-down. Not only are these experts familiarized with every dealership and automaker in the vicinity, but they don’t have to pay as much overhead as wherever you’re travelling from.
In addition to the standard, flat rate or percentage fee, some attorneys will ask for a contingency fee. The way this works is that the Attorney will not charge you anything unless you win. In that event, the attorney will take a fixed percentage of the total award. While this isn’t the ideal situation for those wanting to pay a small fee, it is cost-effective for those who don’t want to pay up-front anywhere from $1000 to $5000.
Lastly, some attorneys do not charge at all. Instead, those that cannot financially afford a lemon law attorney can apply for a pro bono attorney. Depending on where you live, this may mean filing paperwork or being directed to an agency that will assist in matching you with an attorney. While you will never have to pay for these lawyers assistance, a pro bono attorney will be required to fulfill your case quickly and competently; otherwise, they lose their pro bono privilege. If you think you may need to immediately make use of a pro bono attorney, act quickly to ensure a good fit.
State-Specific Factors
While lemon law attorney’s fees are generally federally mandated , some states have different lemon laws and regulations. Georgia has a Lemon Law but it does not award attorneys’ fees. Oregon law permits attorney’s fees and costs but only if the consumer wins. Tennessee lemon law allows attorney’s fees and costs to the extent reasonable and actually incurred. Colorado lemon law awards attorney’s fees in certain cases and the Florida lemon law awards attorney’s fees and costs for certain qualifying claims. These unique considerations may require consumers to work with a lemon law attorney from the state where their automotive lemon law products were purchased or leased making interstate work with lemon law attorneys impractical.