Legal Fees, Published in Advance

It depends on whether the work can be scoped in advance. At Barbarian Law®, predictable work is charged at a published flat fee: a residential purchase including one mortgage $1,650, a sale $1,500, a purchase and sale together $2,950, a refinance $1,250 (residential prices are all-in except HST and permitted disbursements), a will $750, a power of attorney $450, an Ontario incorporation $1,000 for a numbered company or $1,200 for a named company, notarization $75 per document, and independent legal advice $500. Work that cannot be scoped before the documents are seen is billed hourly against a written estimate: $350 for corporate, contract, and general counsel work, and $395 for commercial purchases of assets or sales of shares. All figures exclude HST. Residential prices include every disbursement except land transfer tax, government registration and Teranet fees, a condominium status certificate, similar-name execution letters and title insurance; on other work, disbursements are extra unless a fee states that it includes them.

No. Barbarian Law® holds no money in trust against your file. There is no deposit to get started and no retainer to top up. You receive a written fee estimate before work begins and are invoiced after the work is delivered.

Because a flat fee on unscoped work is a worse deal for the client, not a better one. Where the steps are predictable, such as a residential closing, a will, or an incorporation, the price is fixed and published. Where they are not, such as a share purchase or a negotiated commercial lease, a flat quote has to be padded to cover the worst case and most clients end up paying for a risk that never materializes. Hourly billing against a written estimate means you pay for the work actually done.

A specific retainer is scoped to one defined matter: the engagement covers that matter and ends when the matter does. An evergreen retainer requires the client to keep a balance topped up in the firm's trust account on an ongoing basis. Barbarian Law® takes scoped engagements only — never evergreen — with no standing monthly draw apart from a small number of fractional general counsel arrangements agreed in writing.

Disbursements are third-party costs the firm pays on your behalf and passes through at cost. They are not part of the legal fee and are not a markup. They include title searches, government registration charges, title insurance premiums, corporate search and filing fees, and courier costs. On a real estate file every disbursement is itemized in your statement of adjustments. The exception is an Ontario incorporation, where the published fee already includes the government filing fee and, for a named company, the NUANS name search.

No. Ontario's Notaries Act requires physical attendance for notarial acts, and the Law Society of Ontario confirmed on 26 February 2025 that online notary services are not permitted in the province. Notarization at Barbarian Law® is in person only, at $75 per document. Commissioning an affidavit is a separate act from notarization and is governed by different rules.

At Barbarian Law®, a will is $750 to draft and execute. Mirror wills for a couple are $1,200 for the pair. A power of attorney is $450 per document, or $800 for both property and personal care for one person. A complete estate plan for a couple — mirror wills plus powers of attorney for property and personal care for both people — is $1,800. Every will includes an affidavit of execution from an attesting witness. All figures exclude HST.

At Barbarian Law®, a purchase and a sale handled together are $2,950. On its own, a purchase including one mortgage is $1,650 and a sale is $1,500. Residential prices are all-in: the only extras are HST, land transfer tax, registration and Teranet fees, a condominium status certificate, similar-name execution letters and title insurance, and files involving new construction, estates, matrimonial transfers, private lenders, or multiple titles are quoted separately in writing.

At Barbarian Law®, an Ontario incorporation is $1,000 for a numbered company and $1,200 for a named company. Both figures include the government filing fee, and the named-company figure also includes the NUANS name search. HST is extra. Shareholder agreements and other corporate work after incorporation are billed at $350 per hour against a written estimate.

Call before you instruct us. If your file reaches us within five business days of closing, we will tell you right away whether we can act in time. There is no rush fee on residential files.

Yes. Where a will or power of attorney cannot be signed at the Aurora office or by video, a travel surcharge applies for home, hospital, or on-site attendance. The amount is stated in your written estimate before the appointment is booked.

On flat-fee work, yes: the published figure is the figure. On hourly work, the written estimate sets out a scope and a range before any work begins, and if the scope changes you are told before the hours are spent rather than discovering it on the invoice. The figure that governs your matter is always the one in your written estimate.