Fees are charged to compensate for the services rendered by Nelissen Grade Lawyers Association. This pertains to the study of the case, legal research, legal advice, representation before the Courts or other authorities, the drafting of legal documents (summons, decisions, ...), the exchange of correspondence, meetings and negotiations, consultations, administrative work associated with the management of the file and so on ...
In Belgium, there is no imposed tariff for calculating these fees. As a consequence, each lawyer establishes his own fees, but he must comply with the requirements of article 446ter of the Belgian Judicial Code, which states “that the fees should be established with fair moderation”.
NG determines its fees according to several criteria: the time invested, the importance of the case, the result obtained, the degree of specialization, ... NG generally uses three main methods of calculation.
The lawyer registers the time spent on a case and charges the client based on an agreed hourly rate. This hourly rate will vary depending on the criteria as stated above.
In Belgium the law prohibits that lawyers’ fees would only depend on the result obtained. Nevertheless, it is perfectly conceivable that a percentage is calculated based on the amount of effort invested in the case while also taking into account the result obtained.
n certain cases it is possible to work on the basis of a fixed amount, which has been agreed in advance. These three methods are compatible with each other. They can be used cumulatively.