Generally, copyright law firms bill their legal services by the hour. However, in some cases, fees can be charged on a contingency fee basis or some hybrid thereof.
For copyright infringement litigation, copyright clients will be involved as either the plaintiff or the defendant. Contingency fee arrangements are generally available only if you are the plaintiff; that is, if you are the party suing another party for alleged infringement of your copyrights. Contingency fee arrangements take the form of no payments due from the client unless and until there is a settlement or judgment. The attorneys’ fees are, in that sense, contingent on victory in the case. Generally, the contingency fee is one-third of the recovery after litigation fees and costs have been deducted. Fees would include court filing fees and similar; litigation costs would include expenses like deposition appearance fees, transcription costs, expert witness hourly fees, etc.
If you are defending against a claim of copyright infringement, then hourly billing is the method. Depending on experience, level of difficulty and complexity, location and other factors, experienced copyright lawyers charge in the range of $400 to $800 an hour. And, if you are wondering, “What kind of lawyer for copyright infringement?” the answer is that you need an experienced and dedicated copyright lawyer. For a consultation and/or questions about copyright litigation, call us here at Revision Legal at 231-714-0100 or 855-473-8474. We can assess your copyright situation and give you a quote.
Copyright lawyers also provide other copyright-related legal services. These services can be charged by the hour, charged as a flat fee, and in some cases, charged on a contingency fee basis. Hourly billing is typical for legal services like research, obtaining a copyright license, a sale/purchase of a copyright, and similar services. Flat fee billing is often available for registration of copyrights with the US Copyright Office. Contingency fee billing is sometimes available for efforts to settle claims of copyright infringement. For example, any of the following might be a copyright infringement:
- Someone downloaded your music, films, or photos without permission or payment
- Someone copied a part of your book, play, or other written text
- Someone reproduced your painting or visual work without permission and sold copies
- Someone produced your theater play or showed your film to a public audience without permission or payment
- And more
In such cases, experienced copyright lawyers can send correspondence alleging infringement and demanding payment under the Copyright Act and, sometimes, under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. If negotiations are successful, then the matter can be settled, and money damages can be recovered. These are circumstances where contingency fee billing can be beneficial. Again, call us for a consultation and a quote.
Contact The Copyright Attorneys at Revision Legal
For more information, contact the experienced Copyright Lawyers at Revision Legal. You can contact us through the form on this page or call (855) 473-8474.
