Employment damages analysis is billed at an hourly rate against a retainer established at the outset, with a written fee schedule and a cost estimate before work begins. The scope of the engagement, and so its cost, depends on the factors below.
How employment damages is billed
Employment damages analysis is billed at an hourly rate for records review, data collection, modeling, report preparation, and testimony. A retainer is established at the outset and applied against time incurred. The current rate schedule and retainer terms are provided on request and confirmed in a written engagement agreement.
What sets the scope
Employment damages engagements are scoped to the number of claimants, the complexity of the compensation structure, and how contested mitigation is. A single salaried employee with a documented pay history and a short back pay period is the narrowest scope; variable compensation, equity or bonus plans, multiple claimants, or a disputed front pay horizon widen it. We provide a written fee schedule and a cost estimate before work begins.
What drives cost
Number of claimants and whether the analysis is individual or class-wide
Complexity of compensation: base pay, overtime, commissions, bonuses, equity, and benefit plans that must be reconstructed
Length of the back pay period and whether a front pay period must be projected and bounded
Volume of interim earnings and job search records needed to evaluate mitigation
Whether payroll and timekeeping data must be rebuilt to reconstruct hours in a wage-and-hour matter
Deposition and trial testimony, including preparation and travel time