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Mouw Law Pricing Philosophy

The Three-Lane Model

How Mouw Law Makes Justice Predictable, Accessible, and Human

At Mouw Law, we do things differently — on purpose.

Families deserve clarity. Survivors deserve stability.

And your attorney should never feel like a financial threat.

So we rebuilt the legal experience from the ground up.

The result?

The Three-Lane Model — a trauma-informed, transparent legal framework that gives you access, cost clarity, and sovereignty every step of the way.

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Lane 1 — Access & Support

Because your crisis shouldn’t bill like a crisis.

Most firms charge for every email, every question, every “quick check-in.”

That’s not support — that’s punishment.

Lane One replaces hourly billing with a predictable monthly subscription, giving you:

• Ongoing access to your attorney

• Document review

• Strategy check-ins

• High-touch support during stressful moments

• Guidance before choices become emergencies

This keeps you grounded, informed, and emotionally resourced.

When you’re supported, you make better decisions.

When you make better decisions, courts intervene less.

This is the nervous-system protection the legal industry forgot to build.

Subscriptions start at sliding scale and increase based on preferred tier level.

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Lane 2 — Costs

Transparent, humane, and predictable — the way legal costs should be.

Lane Two covers the real-world expenses that families are often blindsided by in traditional legal models.

At Mouw Law, costs are:

• Disclosed upfront

• Clarified in writing

• Discussed before they’re incurred

Typical costs include:

• Filing fees

• Service fees

• Postage and required publication

• Expert or evaluator fees (used only when necessary)

• Records requests and subpoena fees

• Travel stipends when long-distance court is required

• Non-predatory financial assistance referrals for families in hardship

No surprise invoices.

No hidden charges.

No shame-based billing.

Just clarity and consent.

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The Justice Travel Stipend (JTS)

Because geography should never determine access to justice.

Instead of billing mileage or hourly travel time, Mouw Law uses a simple, predictable travel stipend so rural families are not penalized for distance.

• 0–30 miles: $25

• 30–60 miles: $50

• 90+ miles: $75

• Minnehaha & Lincoln Counties: No travel fee

This stipend covers travel time and cost together — a more ethical model that ensures communities across South Dakota receive equitable representation.

The Justice Travel Stipend for Testimony, Deposition, in all services:

• $95 per hour, Travel time applies from departure to return.

• Lodging billed at cost when an overnight stay is required.

• Mileage billed only when required by court order or state-specific reimbursement rules.

The Justice Travel Stipend applies consistently across all Mouw Law services, ensuring clarity, transparency, and non-predatory billing.

Court Testimony Policy (non-client testimony)

When a matter requires live testimony, depositions, or expert-level explanation of findings, testimony is billed separately from standard legal or neutral services. This is one of the few spaces Mouw Law reserves space for hourly billing.

Testimony Rate, Subpoena Preparation, & Deposition Rate

$275 per hour

(This reflects the advanced preparation, professional risk, and schedule disruption required for sworn testimony. A minimum block applies.)

Minimum Scheduling Block

2 hours

This ensures coverage for preparation, waiting periods, and time reserved exclusively for your case.

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Lane 3 — Legal Work

Where flat fees, subscriptions, contingency, and the Gate System all live together.

This lane includes the actual advocacy work — drafting, negotiating, strategizing, litigating.

Instead of hiding everything under one chaotic hourly rate, Lane Three uses clear structures so you can understand what you’re paying for.

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Flat Fees — when predictability matters most

Used for:

• Parenting plans

• Guardianships

• Document drafting

• Mediation prep

• Uncontested matters

• Selected parental coordination work

Flat fees let families plan ahead and prevent the “every hour costs $300” panic.

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Subscriptions — for long-arc legal journeys

When your matter extends over time but doesn’t require litigation, subscription legal care provides:

• Stability

• Predictable pricing

• Emotional and strategic support

This model is ideal for ongoing conflict, slow-moving cases, and families seeking regulation + clarity.

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Contingency — for injury, institutional harm, and civil rights cases

You pay no attorney fee unless we win.

And we don't take 33% from the start, only after we file.

A portion of every contingency recovery is contributed to the Raven Community Fund, our nonprofit initiative expanding justice access for survivors and low-income families.

What began as a small internal access fund is now a community-powered nonprofit (status pending) reshaping what justice looks like in South Dakota and beyond.

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The Gate System — ethical, predictable litigation pricing

Litigation is unpredictable.

Your bill shouldn’t be.

Each Gate corresponds to a major litigation stage:

• Gate 1 — Filing & early case work

• Gate 2 — Discovery

• Gate 3 — Mediation

• Gate 4 — Pretrial preparation

• Gate 5 — Trial

• Gate 6 — Appeal

Each Gate has:

• A clear cost

• A defined scope

• An explanation of the work included

Some gates do have "Micro-Gates" for when opposing counsel is unpredictable,

but that is also disclosed before we start.

Clients can plan.

We can plan.

Attorneys can litigate ethically.

Nobody is blindsided.

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Why Split the Lanes?

Because access, costs, and legal work are three different things — and pretending they’re one harms clients.

• Lane 1 stabilizes your nervous system.

• Lane 2 stabilizes your finances.

• Lane 3 stabilizes your legal path.

When firms combine all three, families end up paying litigation rates for basic reassurance — or drowning in unspoken costs.

The ACL Model fixes that.

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This is justice architecture.

This is community-led lawyering.

This is Mouw Law.

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Predictable Law = Accessible Law

When families know what things cost, they make better decisions.

When attorneys are transparent, trust grows.

When survivors don’t have to choose between safety and affordability, everything changes.

This model wasn’t built to disrupt the industry.

It was built to repair it.

One family at a time.

One case at a time.

One gate at a time.

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