Grassroots lawyers also have their day

"Hello Mr. Liu! I am Attorney Niu, and this is my assistant, Xiao Wang," Attorney Niu said politely as he entered the small conference room.

Seeing Lao Niu and Wang Chuan enter the conference room, the man in his thirties stood up: "Hello, Attorney Niu. I've brought all the materials you requested." After saying that, he handed a file bag to Lao Niu.

Just as Lao Niu was reviewing the materials and Wang Chuan was preparing to take a statement, Pan Yuanyuan knocked on the conference room door, walked in with a smile, and placed a paper cup filled with hot water in front of the client.

"Thank you!" The man in his thirties quickly bowed.

As Lao Niu was busy looking through the materials, just as Pan Yuanyuan put down her paper cup, Wang Chuan could clearly sense a sly glint in the eyes of the man in his thirties sitting diagonally opposite him.

Then, as Pan Jinlian turned around, his greedy eyes quickly swept over her oval face, her delicate neck, her well-proportioned breasts, and her slender waist, finally settling on Pan Jinlian's long legs. It was just a pity that it wasn't summer.

Despite his best efforts to conceal the greed in his eyes, he still couldn't escape Wang Chuan's notice.

Since Lao Niu didn't speak, Pan Yuanyuan didn't dare to sit down and listen, so she opened the door and went out.

"Mr. Liu, I have reviewed your documents. Apart from the car, the house, and your respective bank accounts, the only other joint property you own is furniture and appliances."

"The Honda sedan is registered in your name. According to the complaint, the woman doesn't want the car, she wants money, and wants you to compensate her with a discounted price. I've seen the purchase agreement; the car was bought after you got married. Unless otherwise agreed, the car is considered marital property," Lao Niu said seriously.

"Yes, I have no objection to the division of the Honda. I can compensate her with a discounted price. We've discussed this before," the man in his thirties nodded.

"The deposits need to be analyzed individually." Old Niu took out several bank deposit slips: "These deposits were made before you got your marriage certificate. They belong to your personal property, not marital property, so they don't need to be divided."

"Attorney Niu, these few of my deposits have been held for a relatively long time. Should I share the interest earned on these two years after we get married with my spouse? I checked online and some people say that the principal of the deposits is my personal property, but the interest earned during this period after marriage is considered joint property. Is that true?" The man in his thirties asked with some concern.

"Please trust the professionals, and don't just believe everything you read online. The interest earned on your savings during the period after marriage is considered legal interest and remains your personal property, not subject to division in a divorce, unless there's a special agreement between you," Old Niu said, adjusting his thick glasses, looking every bit the professional. And indeed, he was a professional.

"No, we didn't make any agreements. Everything else is minor; we'll give her the furniture, appliances, jewelry, etc. It's just the house that's a bit of a hassle," the man in his thirties said immediately.

"Yes, the property certificate lists you as the owner, and the house was bought before the marriage. The house belongs to you as your personal property, and there's nothing to argue about."

The key issue is the mortgage. You paid the mortgage for over two years after your marriage with your salaries, and this portion of the money is considered marital property, which your spouse has the right to claim a share of. Furthermore, your spouse also has the right to claim a share of the property's appreciation in value," Lao Niu said.

Old Niu didn't speak quickly, while Wang Chuan was taking notes rapidly on the case record.

"But the mortgage payments after we got married were all from my salary! Her salary is so low, and it's all spent on daily expenses. She hasn't paid any mortgage payments at all. Should this also be divided?" The man in his thirties looked at Lao Niu with some incomprehension.

"Let me explain this to you. According to the Marriage Law and its judicial interpretations, in the absence of a special agreement, the income of both parties after marriage, including wages and bonuses, is considered joint property."

"The house is your personal property, but the mortgage is being paid off with your salary, which is considered joint property. Therefore, the salary used for mortgage payments also needs to be divided," Old Niu patiently explained.

"Then... how is the appreciation of the house calculated?" the man in his thirties asked.

"Generally, it's calculated by subtracting your purchase cost from the market price. The specific price will be calculated for you after you've made your appointment." Old Niu noticed that the other party was asking quite detailed questions, so he kept an eye out to prevent them from deciding not to continue using the service after getting all the details.

"If I hire you to handle this case, how much will the legal fees be?" the man in his thirties asked after thinking for a moment.

"Your divorce case involves a 60-square-meter apartment in Shijingshan District, a Honda car, and approximately 500,000 yuan in savings. The total amount in dispute is around 4 million yuan."

According to the Bar Association's progressive fee schedule, the preliminary estimate for legal fees is around 190,000 yuan. Old Niu finished speaking and smiled at the other party. He clearly sensed surprise in the other person's eyes; he knew this quote was too high!

"Attorney Niu, do you think there's any room for negotiation on this price? I think it's a bit high." The man in his thirties leaned back in his chair after saying this.

"Yes, as I just said, this is the Bar Association's regulation, and our firm also has its own fee schedule. Based on the circumstances of your case, if you were to have me represent you in court, the minimum fee would be 120,000 yuan." After saying this, Lao Niu picked up his teacup and took a sip of hot water.

Wang Chuan noticed the man in his thirties across from him frown, clearly indicating that the other party still felt the lawyer's fees were a bit high. Seeing Lao Niu pick up his teacup, he knew it was his turn to step in. This was how the master and apprentice had always done things before; in Lao Niu's words, it was called "working together."

Wang Chuan hurriedly said, "Mr. Liu, our Director Niu has been practicing for over twenty years and has handled hundreds of divorce cases of this type. He is very experienced."

If your case doesn't involve real estate, I would definitely recommend choosing a lawyer with about three years of experience. Although their experience might be less, their fees will be much lower than Director Niu's. There won't be any technical issues.

However, your case involves a property worth several million. We are just ordinary people; how many millions can we earn in a lifetime?

Therefore, to be on the safe side, I suggest you choose an experienced senior lawyer, who can also help you secure more benefits.

The man in his thirties glanced at Wang Chuan and nodded expressionlessly: "Well then, I'll go back and think about it. I'll give you an answer before this Friday."

"Okay. Your case is going to trial next week. If you want to hire someone, I advise you to do so as soon as possible. That way, you'll have some time to prepare for the trial," Old Niu said sincerely.

"Mr. Liu, Director Niu's consultation fee is one thousand per hour. Consultation time of less than half an hour will be calculated at half the rate, and consultation time of more than half an hour will be calculated at the full hour rate."

Your consultation lasted 49 minutes and 32 seconds, and the total consultation fee is 1,000 yuan! If you later entrust us with handling your case, the consultation fee can be deducted from your attorney's fee.

"Would you like to pay in cash or by bank card?" Wang Chuan asked hurriedly when he saw that the other party had already started packing to leave.

"Consulting fee?" The man in his thirties paused for a moment, then turned to look at Old Niu.

Wang Chuan smiled at him, inwardly sneering: What... do you want to get something for free?