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Payment via Zelle:
You may Zelle to: megawagneresq@gmail.com
(Zelle will ask you to make payment to "Megan Natalino") ^^
Credit or Debit card payments are processed via PayPal HERE.
If you need other arrangements, please text or call our office directly to receive
e-mail instructions on alternative payment options. Thank you.
Interested in a Payment Plan?
Speak to Megan regarding how you can set up a monthly payment plan - which allows you to start out with a retainer and when the retainer fee is billed out until it is at $0, then you can set up a payment plan to pay the equivalent of just 2.5 hours a month of Attorney-level legal work until your total invoice is paid off - even if it takes you until after your case is completed to pay. This allows clients to budget how much representation will cost them each month.
Real Estate and Estate Planning rates are based on the complexity of the case/matter.
If I am representing you as the seller in a real estate transaction, your fee to me is $350.*
If I am representing you as the buyer in a real estate transaction, your fee to me is $500.*
Estate planning packages start at $1,250 and services can be bundled for savings.
*You are still responsible to pay other closing costs/title fees/utility surcharges, etc. on your own.
Family Law Retainer payments and hourly rates:
Retainers start at $2,500 for most family law cases, with an hourly rate of $350 for all Attorney work and an hourly rate of $125 for any work done by the Paralegal. By employing this fee structure of Attorney vs. Paralegal rates, Wagner Law saves you money by having a qualified paralegal prepare the rough draft of documents before Attorney Megan Wagner Cox edits and polishes the pleading to prepare for filing (which cuts down on the amount of time the Attorney must spend writing drafts, and ultimately allows the Attorney to focus on how best to present your case.) In many cases, pleadings are best drafted initially by the Paralegal first and re-worked, refined, and revised by the Attorney second.
INFORMATION REGARDING OUR BILLING PRACTICES:
All agreements regarding fees are put into writing before the commencement of any legal work - because Wagner Law believes in transparency and fairness in how we bill our clients.
When required by the Court, travel to any county outside of Kane, DuPage, or Kendall County is billed at $175 per hour, rather than the full $350/hour for the Attorney's time.
All cases are different. It is reasonable to expect that a relatively uncontested divorce/parenting time (custody) case will cost at least $2,500 without an Attorney having to work to recover your legal fees should you decide to stop paying as agreed. As a recognition of our joint understanding when you retain me, I am offering 3 levels of retainers and rates based on your commitment to working with me and the process of how I handle divorces and parenting time (custody) cases.
Any unused funds out of the retainer payment are refunded to the client after the scope of representation has been concluded.
Any court appearance - whether Zoom or in-person - is billed at a minimum of 1 hour, regardless of how much time is spent in front of the judge, because preparation to make use of each monthly court date is required, the judge's orders must be written/approved/filed afterwards, and opposing attorneys will discuss court right after stepping down from the judge's bench, etc. No effective court appearance can happen in less than 1 hour of attorney's time.
Clerk filing fees must be paid in advance and are not included as part of the retainer.
If you are unable to make a monthly payment of at least 2.5 hours of attorney work time and your account becomes more than 14 days past due carrying a balance of more than $500, Megan will begin discussions with you about possibly withdrawing from your case.
If you fail to make payments as agreed in writing before the start of the representation, Megan will seek fees from you to cover her costs of collecting on legal fees from you.
Various Levels of Retainers and Rates - you choose what works for you:
Level I: $2,500 retainer down (not including the filing fee charged by the Court Clerk) = Attorney work at $350/hour / Paralegal work at $125/hour
This level means you are pre-paying for about 7 hours of legal work before I ask you to replenish your retainer.
Level II: $3,500 retainer down (not including the filing fee charged by the Court Clerk) = Attorney work at $315/hour / Paralegal work at $100/hour
This level means you are pre-paying for about 11 hours of legal work before I ask you to replenish your retainer.
Level III: $5,000 retainer down not including the filing fee charged by the Court Clerk) = Attorney work at $290/hour / Paralegal work at $75/hour
This level means you are pre-paying for about 17 hours of legal work before I will ask you to replenish your retainer.
Is Flat Fee ever an option?
**In certain, rare circumstances and when it is legally appropriate, Wagner Law offers flat-fee payment agreements for uncontested divorces. These flat fee arrangements start at $1,200-1,500 for divorces not involving minor children, and start at $2,500 for divorces with minor children.
NOTE ABOUT FAMILY LAW TRIALS:
Any family law case that is set for trial requires a $5,000 "trial retainer," which must be paid at least 60 days before the commencement of the trial. If the trial retainer is not paid timely, Attorney Megan Wagner Cox reserves the right to withdraw from your case immediately so as to allow you to have time to find alternative counsel arrangements. The trial retainer is necessary to ensure that Wagner Law can adequately prepare for a family law trial, which requires many hours of preparation and planning. Any unused funds are refunded to the client after the conclusion of the trial.
^^Attorney Megan Wagner Cox was originally licensed as Megan Wagner Natalino, her former married name as of 2014. By 2024, Megan's current name for her bar licensure took effect. The Attorney Trust Account for Wagner Law set up with the State of Illinois is registered under this former name of Megan Natalino. However, Megan officially appears on the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission's (ARDC) directory of attorneys as Megan Wagner Cox with ARDC # 6315817.
These rates are effective as of November 1, 2026.
call or text: 224-366-9835
Mailing Address:
2112 West Galena Blvd, Suite 8
Aurora, Illinois 60506
(c) Wagner Law - July 2025
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