Pro bono legal work is free representation from lawyers who donate their time, but you may still pay court fees, filing costs, and other expenses the lawyer doesn't cover
When a lawyer takes your case pro bono, they charge no fee for their work. That means you do not pay them for their time, research, or courtroom appearances. But pro bono does not mean cost-free. You will likely pay court filing fees, document preparation costs, expert witness fees, and travel expenses — the same things you would pay if you hired a lawyer at full rate. The lawyer simply absorbs their own labor.
Pro bono work happens through three main routes: legal aid organizations that employ staff lawyers, law firms that assign cases to attorneys as part of their practice, and individual lawyers who take cases directly. Each route has different rules about what expenses you cover and what the lawyer covers. Understanding which route you are on matters, because it changes what you owe.
Key Takeaways
- Pro bono means the lawyer charges no fee, but court costs, filing fees, and other case expenses are typically your responsibility unless the lawyer or organization agrees otherwise.
- Legal aid organizations, private law firms, and solo practitioners all offer pro bono work, and each has different policies about who pays for expenses.
- Some courts waive filing fees for people with low income, which can eliminate the largest single expense in a pro bono case.
- The lawyer's organization, not the individual attorney, usually decides whether to cover costs like expert witnesses or depositions.
- You should ask about expense responsibility before accepting pro bono representation, because assumptions can create conflict later.
What expenses you typically pay in a pro bono case
Court filing fees are the most common expense. When you file a lawsuit, divorce, eviction defense, or criminal appeal, the court charges a fee to open the case. These fees vary by court and case type — a small claims filing might cost $50 to $100, while a civil lawsuit can run $200 to $500 or more. A pro bono lawyer will not charge you for their time to prepare the filing, but you pay the court directly.
Service of process — the cost to officially notify the other party that a lawsuit exists — is another frequent expense. A process server or sheriff's deputy charges $50 to $200 to deliver court papers. In some cases, you can serve the other party yourself, which costs nothing, but the court or the other party's lawyer may object to that method.
Document preparation and copying can add up quickly. If your case requires medical records, employment records, or police reports, you may pay $0.25 to $1 per page to obtain them. Certified copies cost more. A case with hundreds of pages of discovery — the formal exchange of evidence between sides — can generate $500 to $1,000 in copying costs alone.
Expert witnesses, investigators, and depositions are expensive and usually your responsibility. If your case requires a doctor to testify about an injury, or an engineer to evaluate a building defect, that expert charges a fee — often $200 to $500 per hour or a flat rate per appearance. A pro bono lawyer will not pay that. Some legal aid organizations have funds to cover expert costs in certain cases, but you should not assume they do.
How legal aid organizations handle expenses
Legal aid offices employ staff attorneys who take cases for free. They are funded by government grants, private donations, and foundation money. Because they operate on a fixed budget, they have strict policies about which expenses they will cover and which you must pay.
Most legal aid organizations will cover basic court filing fees for their clients, because they recognize that a filing fee barrier defeats the purpose of free legal help. Some will also cover service of process and certified document copies. But they rarely cover expert witnesses or private investigators unless the case is criminal, involves a child's safety, or meets other specific criteria.
You should ask the legal aid office directly: "What expenses will your organization cover, and what will I need to pay?" Get the answer in writing if possible. Legal aid intake workers handle this question regularly and can tell you exactly what to expect.
How private law firms structure pro bono work
Large law firms often require their attorneys to perform pro bono work as part of their professional responsibility. A firm might assign a lawyer to handle your case at no charge. But the firm's policy on expenses varies widely.
Some firms cover all case expenses as part of their pro bono commitment — they see it as part of the cost of doing business and serving the community. Other firms cover the lawyer's time only, and you pay everything else. A few firms will cover certain expenses, like filing fees, but not others, like expert witnesses.
When a private firm takes your case pro bono, ask: "Does your firm cover court costs and other expenses, or do I pay those?" The answer depends entirely on the firm's internal policy, not on any rule of law. Two firms in the same city can have opposite policies.
Court fee waivers and how they reduce your costs
Most courts allow you to request a fee waiver or in forma pauperis status if you cannot afford to pay filing fees. This is a formal request to the court, usually made on a simple form, stating your income and expenses. If the court grants it, you pay nothing to file your case.
Fee waivers are not automatic. You must ask for them, and you must show that you genuinely cannot afford the fee. The court looks at your household income, assets, and monthly expenses. If you receive public benefits like food assistance or Medicaid, that usually supports your request. If you are employed but low-wage, the court will consider whether the filing fee would create genuine hardship.
A pro bono lawyer can help you request a fee waiver, and many will do so as a matter of course. If you are working with legal aid, they will almost certainly file the waiver request for you. This is one of the most important cost-saving steps in a pro bono case, because it eliminates what is often the largest single expense.
What happens when a case settles or wins
If your pro bono case settles or you win a judgment, the question of expenses becomes more complicated. Some settlements or judgments include money to cover your costs. If the other party agrees to pay your court costs as part of the settlement, that money goes to you or to the court, not to your lawyer — because the lawyer was not charging a fee in the first place.
In rare cases, a court will order the losing party to pay the winner's attorney fees. This happens in certain types of cases — civil rights violations, contract disputes with fee-shifting clauses, or cases where a statute allows it. If your pro bono lawyer wins such an award, the firm or organization usually keeps that money to support their pro bono program. You should ask about this before the case concludes, so you understand what will happen if you win.
If you receive a settlement or judgment that includes money for your own expenses — the costs you paid out of pocket — that money is yours to keep. It is separate from attorney fees.
How to ask about expenses before you accept pro bono help
Before you agree to work with a pro bono lawyer or organization, have a specific conversation about money. Do not assume anything. Ask these questions:
- What court costs and filing fees will your organization or firm cover?
- If I need an expert witness or investigator, will you cover that cost, or will I?
- If I cannot afford to pay for something the case needs, what happens?
- Will you help me request a court fee waiver?
- If we settle or win and recover money, how is that money handled?
Write down the answers. If the lawyer says "we cover filing fees but not expert witnesses," that is the agreement you are making. If later the case needs an expert and the lawyer says you must pay, you will have clarity about what was promised.
When you cannot afford the expenses even with pro bono help
Sometimes a case needs an expert witness or investigator, but you cannot pay for it and the pro bono organization will not cover it. This is a real problem, and it happens.
Your options are limited. You can ask the pro bono lawyer whether the case can proceed without the expert — sometimes it can, though it weakens your position. You can ask whether the expert will work on a reduced fee or payment plan. You can ask the court whether it will order the other party to pay expert costs (this rarely works, but it is worth asking). You can look for a nonprofit organization focused on your specific issue — for example, organizations that help domestic violence survivors sometimes fund expert witnesses in custody cases.
If none of those work, you may have to accept that the case cannot move forward as you hoped. This is one of the real limitations of pro bono work: the lawyer's time is free, but the case's actual costs are not, and those costs can be real barriers.
Frequently Asked Questions
If a pro bono lawyer takes my case, can they drop it if I cannot pay for expenses?
It depends on the lawyer's organization and the stage of the case. Early on, before much work is done, a lawyer can usually withdraw if you cannot pay necessary expenses. Once the case is underway, withdrawal is harder and requires court permission. Ask about this upfront: "If expenses come up that I cannot pay, can you still represent me, or will you have to withdraw?"
Do I have to pay the pro bono lawyer back if I win money?
No. Pro bono means the lawyer charges no fee, period. Even if you win a large settlement, you do not owe the lawyer anything for their time. You may owe the court for filing fees you paid, or you may owe back the cost of documents you purchased, but you do not owe attorney fees. This is one of the core protections of pro bono work.
What if I cannot afford a fee waiver request either?
A fee waiver request itself is free — there is no charge to ask the court to waive the filing fee. You fill out a form and submit it. The court decides whether to grant it. Your pro bono lawyer can help you fill out the form, and that help is part of their free representation.
Can a pro bono lawyer charge me for phone calls or emails?
No. Pro bono representation means all of the lawyer's work is free. Phone calls, emails, research, document drafting, court appearances — all of it is covered by the pro bono commitment. If a lawyer or organization tries to charge you for communication or routine work, that is not pro bono.
What if the pro bono organization says they will cover costs but then refuses to pay?
Get the cost-coverage agreement in writing before the expense is incurred. If the organization promised to cover filing fees and then refuses to pay one, you have documentation of the promise. You can ask to speak with a supervisor or the organization's director. If the organization is a legal aid office, you can contact your state bar association to file a complaint. If it is a private firm, you can contact the firm's managing partner.