How Much Does a Lawyer Cost in New York City? Rules, Caps and Free Help (2026)

New York City is the most expensive legal market in the country by most measures, and also one of the most regulated. Court rules cap what an injury or malpractice lawyer can take. A statute controls workers' compensation fees. Divorce lawyers must sign a retainer with refund terms, and any fee expected to reach $3,000 has to be put in writing. The court system runs a fee arbitration program that lawyers cannot refuse. And the city pays for a lawyer in two of the most common situations New Yorkers face: an eviction case and an immigration case.

This guide covers that New York City side: what the rules allow, what the courts charge, and where the free help is. For how hourly, flat and contingency fees work in general, see our complete guide to lawyer costs; for employment and family matters in New York specifically, see employment lawyer costs in New York and family lawyer costs for child support changes.

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What lawyers charge in New York City: the numbers

Clio's 2025 Legal Trends data puts the average New York lawyer at $420 an hour, with a range from $201 to $576 across practice areas, against a national average of $349. Family lawyers in the state average $426 and civil litigators $429, and the average rate billed by law firms as a whole is $387 (Clio, lawyer rates in New York). Manhattan firms sit at the top of that range; solo practitioners in the outer boroughs sit near the bottom.

The hourly number matters less than it looks. Most of the cases New Yorkers bring, injury, malpractice, workers' compensation and most employment claims, run on contingency, where the fee is a share of the recovery and nothing is paid upfront. Hourly billing is mainly a divorce, real estate, estate, business and immigration question. The table shows how each kind of matter is usually priced in the city and the rule that governs it.

Four rules that cap or control fees in New York

1. Injury cases: the one-third ceiling

The Appellate Division rules for Manhattan and the Bronx (22 NYCRR 603.25) and for Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island (22 NYCRR 691.20) treat a contingent fee in a personal injury or wrongful death case as fair only if it follows one of two schedules. Schedule A is a sliding scale: 50 percent of the first $1,000 recovered, 40 percent of the next $2,000, 35 percent of the next $22,000, and 25 percent of everything above $25,000. Schedule B is a flat percentage of no more than 33 1/3 percent. Anything above the schedule is treated as unconscionable unless a court approves it in writing for extraordinary circumstances.

The choice between the schedules is written into the retainer, and it changes the arithmetic once a case is large. On a $100,000 recovery, Schedule A comes to $27,750, while a flat one third comes to $33,333. The retainer also has to say whether the percentage is taken from the net recovery, after case expenses are deducted, or from the gross. Ask which one you are signing.

2. Medical malpractice: a sliding scale set by statute

For medical, dental and podiatric malpractice, Judiciary Law 474-a caps the fee at 30 percent of the first $250,000 recovered, 25 percent of the next $250,000, 20 percent of the next $500,000, 15 percent of the next $250,000, and 10 percent of anything over $1,250,000. Lawyers cannot contract around it.

3. Workers' compensation: the Board sets the fee

Under Workers' Compensation Law 24, a lawyer's fee in a compensation case is not enforceable unless the Board approves it, and once approved it becomes a lien on the award and is paid in the manner the Board fixes. Collecting a fee outside that process is a misdemeanor. In practice, an injured worker in New York pays nothing upfront and nothing out of pocket; the fee comes out of the benefits awarded.

4. Divorce and custody: the retainer has rules of its own

In domestic relations matters, 22 NYCRR 1400.3 requires a written retainer agreement signed by both lawyer and client, in plain language, that states the hourly rates, the amount of any advance retainer and what it covers, the circumstances in which unused retainer money is refunded, and the client's right to cancel at any time. Bills must be itemized and sent at least every 60 days, and the lawyer may not charge for time spent discussing a bill. 22 NYCRR 1400.4 adds a flat prohibition: a lawyer "shall not enter into an arrangement for, charge or collect a nonrefundable retainer fee from a client." A divorce retainer in New York that says nonrefundable is not enforceable as written.

The paperwork rule that protects every client

Outside divorce, 22 NYCRR Part 1215 requires a letter of engagement, or a signed retainer covering the same points, before the work starts or within a reasonable time after. It has to explain the scope of the services, the fees, expenses and billing practices, and, where it applies, the client's right to arbitrate a fee dispute. The rule does not apply when the fee is expected to be less than $3,000, when the work is of the same kind the client has already paid the lawyer for, or when the lawyer is admitted elsewhere and does no material work in New York. If a New York lawyer quotes you more than $3,000 and nothing arrives in writing, that is a question to ask on day one.

When the bill looks wrong: fee arbitration you can demand

New York runs a court-sponsored fee dispute program under 22 NYCRR Part 137. It covers disputes between $1,000 and $50,000, and larger ones if both sides agree. The rule is explicit: "Arbitration under this Part shall be mandatory for an attorney if requested by a client," and the award is final and binding unless either side seeks a new trial in court within the time the rules allow (22 NYCRR 137.2). It does not cover criminal matters, fees fixed by statute or court order, or claims that are really about malpractice, which belong in court.

What the courts charge in New York City

Court fees are owed whether or not you have a lawyer, and they come on top of the fee. The main ones in the city:

• Supreme Court (where divorces and larger civil cases are filed): $210 for an index number to open a case, including the surcharges set by the same statute (CPLR 8018); $95 to file a request for judicial intervention, which is what gets a judge assigned; $30 for the note of issue that puts a case on the trial calendar once a judge is assigned; $65 for a jury demand; and $45 for every motion (CPLR 8020). An uncontested divorce therefore costs $335 in court fees before a lawyer bills an hour.
• Civil Court: $45 to start an ordinary civil action, and $45 for a landlord to begin an eviction proceeding (NYC Civil Court Act 1911).
• Small Claims: claims up to $10,000 (section 1801), with a filing fee of $15 for claims of $1,000 or less and $20 above that (section 1803). The court is designed to be used without a lawyer.
• Fee waivers: CPLR 1101 lets a person who cannot afford the costs ask the court, by affidavit of income and assets, to waive "the costs, fees, and expenses." Clients of legal aid and nonprofit legal services offices can have fees waived without a separate motion.

Beyond court fees come disbursements: process servers, transcripts, medical records, expert witnesses. In an hourly case they are billed as they occur. In a contingency case, ask whether the firm advances them, whether they are repaid if the case is lost, and whether they come off the top before or after the percentage is calculated.

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Free and low-cost help the city funds

• Facing eviction: New York City's Right to Counsel program provides free legal representation or advice to tenants in Housing Court and in NYCHA termination proceedings, in every ZIP code and regardless of immigration status. Say that you want an attorney at your first court appearance, call Housing Court Answers at 718-557-1379 or 212-962-4795, or call 311 and ask for the Tenant Helpline (NYC Human Resources Administration).
• Immigration: ActionNYC offers free, confidential legal screenings and representation for citizenship, green cards, DACA, Temporary Protected Status and other matters through community organizations, hospitals and libraries, with interpreters in more than 200 languages. Call 800-354-0365 or dial 311 and say "ActionNYC" (ActionNYC at The New York Public Library).
• Finding a private lawyer at a known price: the New York City Bar's Legal Referral Service connects callers with a screened lawyer; initial consultations are "$35 or free, depending on the type of case," and last up to 30 minutes. Call 212-626-7373 (New York City Bar).
• Court fee waivers under CPLR 1101, above, for anyone who cannot pay filing fees.

Where New York City costs more, and where it does not

Hourly work costs more here than almost anywhere in the country, and a Manhattan address adds to it. Contingency work is a different story: because the fee schedules apply in the city, an injured New Yorker often keeps a larger share of a settlement than a client in a state where 40 percent after a lawsuit is filed is routine. Court fees are moderate by national standards. The variables that move the total most are the ones they move everywhere: whether the case settles or is tried, whether a large firm or a solo practitioner handles it, and how organized the client is when the clock is running.

Questions to ask before you sign in New York City

• In an injury case: Schedule A or Schedule B, and is the percentage taken from the net or the gross recovery?
• Who advances disbursements, and what happens to them if the case is lost?
• Is this a Part 1215 engagement letter or a retainer, and does it mention my right to arbitrate under Part 137?
• In a divorce: when do the itemized bills arrive, and what are the refund terms if we part ways early? Any "nonrefundable" wording is a red flag.
• In an hourly matter: who else will bill on my file, at what rates, and in what minimum increments?
• Before paying anyone: am I eligible for Right to Counsel, ActionNYC or a court fee waiver?

Lawyers who welcome these questions tend to be the ones whose bills hold no surprises. Lawyers who deflect them have told you something too.

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This article explains general rules; it is not legal advice, and AttorneyReview is a matching service, not a law firm. Fee rules change and depend on the facts of a matter; confirm them with the lawyer you hire.