I don't have thousands of dollars to pay an attorney. Now What?
That’s not a problem! At least 80% of our cases operate on contingency fee agreements. “Contingency” means you do not pay us unless you are paid; as is customary in these agreements, we take ⅓ of any amount of compensation we are able to get for you. Under a contingency fee agreement, we take zero money from you until/unless your case has resulted in compensation. And if we are taking your case, we believe you will recover that compensation.
Some cases do require clients to pay; for those, we offer various financing options to help with the cost of your legal services. At Marashi Legal, we take transparency very seriously. Our hourly rate for non-contingency cases is $675 per hour. We have set our fees at about the 75th percentile of fees in the NYC area. We’re not the cheapest, nor are we the most expensive. Our fees are reflective of our level of experience, as well as the time and attention to detail we devote to you and your loved ones.
Regardless of your economic means, an initial consultation is always absolutely 100% free of charge. Please contact us today to set up a time for a phone or video call with us about your issue.
At Marashi Legal, we believe that everyone deserves access to the highest quality of care, and that finances should not be a barrier to careful and thorough legal representation. No matter the nature of your agreement with us, whether contingency or hourly, you will always get our best work. If you win, we win.
How can I make sure I have the best case?
Before you retain our services
Document everything as soon as possible! Put all records and documents relevant to your issues in safekeeping and preserve them. Take detailed notes and write down anything and everything you can remember (names, dates and times, locations, observations, feelings); something that may not seem important now may become a crucial part of your case later on.
Beyond the documents you may have been given by officials or know you can access, try to think of other information you could obtain that might be relevant to your issue. One key question we always ask: could a camera have captured your incident? There are always more cameras than you would suspect, and it is possible your incident was captured by any of the following: a private business or residence’s surveillance camera, a police officer’s body camera, a traffic light camera, a subway surveillance camera, or even a camera on a passing MTA bus! In many cases, these cameras only preserve video for a short amount of time, so it’s important that you both request the video from the appropriate person or organization right away, and that you document your request of that video footage. This is also something we are happy to take care of for you.
Remember: people tend to cover up information that isn’t to their advantage, so it is up to you to preserve all the evidence you can that may help your case! You know what happened to you, but if all the facts are not documented, they become hard to prove, which limits the resources we need to advance your case and hurts your chances of success.
Please consult with us as soon as possible after the incident and provide us with everything you have.
Once you have retained Marashi Legal
Keep in touch with us regularly and make sure you let us know if your residential address, phone number or email address change. Keep up with any appointments regarding any of the injuries you may have suffered, and with any legal appointments that develop in the course of your case. Continue to make notes about anything new that happens in your case, and continue to carefully preserve all the documents that relate to your case.
It's past 90 days. Do I have a case?
Yes! State claims against New York City generally have a 1 year and 90 day statute of limitations. Federal claims have a three year statute of limitations. If you were under 18 years old when the incident occurred, this 1 year and 90 day clock does not begin ticking until your 18th birthday!
What are the criteria you consider when thinking about taking a case (whether contingency or hourly)?
At Marashi Legal, the focus of our practice is bringing justice to people harmed by misconduct by agents of government organizations. We believe that the key to a successful case is persistence, credibility, and strong legal arguments, and that success in these cases is incompatible with motives of revenge or the dehumanization of our opponents. We are particularly inspired and excited by clients who, after being inflicted with devastating injustices, persevere and use their cases as opportunities for growth and progress. When you approach us with your case, it’s most important to be 100% honest and forthcoming about every detail that might be relevant, even if there are details that don’t reflect well on you. We are all only human, and we are your allies in your pursuit of justice.
Do you specialize in my legal issue?
We are a full-service civil rights law office ready to approach all kinds of government misconduct cases as a holistic body of knowledge. Each individual case relates to others, and the sum total of these cases can be a vehicle for change on a larger scale. Our mantra is: we do hard things. If we aren’t knowledgeable about the areas of law implicated in your case, we have a great network of specialists throughout the country that share our client-centered philosophies who we will refer you to. Marashi Legal is constantly looking for innovative ways to deliver the best legal care for our clients, and we heavily invest in technology and legal education so we can continue to be at our best. For more information on specific services offered or to tell us about your potential case, contact us today!