In addition to the fee schedule listed below, Dr. Ellen Stein will consider accepting other fee agreements that may be required or customary for a particular agency, law firm or a specific court. This work will be accepted on a case-by-case basis, and will require a contractual agreement between the parties.
Evaluation Fees
| Forensic Record/File Review | $500 per hour |
| Forensic Psychological Testing | $500 per hour |
| Forensic Clinical Interview | $500 per hour |
| Forensic Report Writing | $500 per hour |
| Attorney Consultation | $500 per hour |
Court Testimony Fees
| Testimony Time | $500 per hour |
| Deposition Time | $500 per hour |
| In-court Consultation/Observation | $500 per hour |
Training, Invited Lecture & Professional Seminar Fees
| 6 – 8-hour engagement | $2,000 per day |
| 4-hour engagement | $1,000 per day |
| 2-hour engagement | $500 per day |
Travel Fees
| Road Travel | $150 per hour (with reasonable associated expenses) |
| Air Travel | $500 up to 5 hours $1000 up to 10 hours |
Payment Policy
Following an initial consultation by phone, a retainer of 20 hours ($10,000) is customarily submitted along with the fee agreement of this office. Evaluations and/or consultation that may not yet require this block of time may be afforded a reduced retainer fee of 10 hours ($5,000). All retainer payments must be submitted, along with the fee agreement, in order to begin work on a case. Upon exhaustion of the fee agreement, monthly invoices will be sent to counsel, and are due upon receipt. Failure to complete payment each month will result in the cessation of work and/or cancellation of any scheduled appointments, pending account payment. Unused retainer balances are returned as credit. All tax preparation must reflect the actual fees paid if a credit balance has been refunded.
Cancellation Policy
Please contact our office directly at 619-595-4005, to cancel any appointment scheduled with a defendant or plaintiff. Cancellation of a forensic interview and/or testing appointment must be made 7 days prior to that appointment. Since alternative bookings are unlikely at such short notice, our policy includes a charge of 4 hours ($2,000) for all interview appointment “no show” or late cancellations occurring with insufficient notice. This represents the amount of time reserved for your client for this service. A charge of $2,000 is applied for all forensic testing and assessment appointment “no show” or cancellations, occurring with insufficient notice. This represents the minimal time that has been reserved for your client for this service.
Forensic Psychological Evaluations and Independent Medical Examinations (IME’s) are typically complicated and labor-intensive. The entire evaluation process will take, at a minimum, 12 to 15 hours, including record review, forensic interviews, forensic psychological testing, test scoring, and forensic report writing. Each examinee differs in the time they may take, to complete testing. Each case varies in terms of the volume of discovery or records required for review. As such, some evaluations require a greater expenditure of time. More complex evaluations can take 20-30 hours or more to complete. This will be discussed at the onset of the case in which you are retaining forensic consultation or assessment.
Disclaimer
It is critical that it is understood that regardless of the source of fees or referral for all evaluations, Dr. Ellen Stein operates as an independent evaluator and consultant. Conclusions will be offered in an unbiased, ethical and professional manner utilizing a best practices approach. As a consequence, the conclusions and recommendations that result, may not always support the outcome which was anticipated or desired by counsel. You are welcome to discuss the findings of any evaluation in order to determine how you wish to incorporate these services and the conclusions which were drawn in your case.
Fee schedule current as of 7/1/2023