Chris Patterson’s Standard Hourly Rate
NZ$600 / AUS$575 plus GST (if applicable)
Daily Rate for Lead Counsel
NZ High Court, Employment Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court appearances
NZ$3,950 plus GST
Pro Bono
Chris provides a proportion of pro bono work for parties who are not entitled to legal aid. Chris is also a member of the lawyers pro bono panel operated by the Sports Tribunal of New Zealand. Pro bono instructions will be accepted subject to the New Zealand Law Society code of ethics relating to barristers and workload.
Contingency (No Win No Fee) and Litigation Funding
I offer a number of contingency fee arrangements tailored for specific plaintiff cases.
Why do I ask for a retainer
I regularly request that a retainer be paid at the commencement of any new instruction as security for my work in progress. I issue fee notes every two weeks. It is my preference that our fee notes are paid on receipt and that my retainer is returned to you once my final fee note has been paid.
Where is the retainer held
The retainer is always held in a solicitor’s trust account. As with all barristers, I do not have a trust account. Your retainer cannot be accessed without your written permission, usually by way of an email, approval.
Invoice Basis
To make the process of paying as easy as possible our invoices can be paid via bank transfer, online credit card payment or Bitcoin.