Litigation — Quoted Case by Case

A last resort, and a serious one: suing a school is expensive and rarely the fastest route to what a student actually wants, which is to graduate. Almost everything on the fees page exists to make litigation unnecessary. Fees paid on those items can be credited toward it when set out in writing.

Fee structure depends on the case: hourly, a hybrid of a reduced hourly rate plus a contingency, or, for the strongest cases, a contingency. Which is available turns on the claim, the forum, the likely recovery, and whether the statute allows fee-shifting.

One hard truth about litigation against schools is worth stating plainly. Most students do not want money — they want to be reinstated. Schools know this, and they use it: they will drag a matter out for as long as they can, and then, right before a ruling they expect to lose, offer the student a seat back with no money attached. If a lawyer took the case on pure contingency, that outcome can mean the lawyer walks away with nothing unless the reinstatement itself is valued and built into the fee arrangement from the start. That is why the fee structure has to be matched honestly to what your case actually is, and why I will tell you at the outset which structure fits — and whether litigation is the right tool at all.

Filing also requires specific things to be in place: the internal process generally exhausted, deadlines and notice requirements met, and a record that supports the claim. Cases are lost on those points before the merits are reached. Court costs — filing, service, discovery, depositions, experts — are separate from attorney’s fees. And mind the clock: after a final internal decision, the deadline to go to court can be as short as thirty days.

Where I am admitted, the bill is shorter

I am admitted to the bars of the U.S. District Courts for the Southern, Middle and Northern Districts of Florida, the District of Colorado, the Northern and Southern Districts of Illinois, the District of Nebraska, the District of New Mexico, and the Western District of Wisconsin, and of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. In those courts I file and appear under my own name, which means no pro hac vice motion and no second lawyer billing alongside me for a role that is often largely formal. The District of Colorado matters especially here, because it grants no pro hac vice admission at all — a lawyer is either a member of that bar or cannot appear, and a family that has to go find admitted counsel is paying twice. In every other district, federal litigation proceeds through pro hac vice admission and association with counsel admitted there, and that second lawyer is a real line on the estimate. I am licensed to practice law in Florida only; a federal court admission is not a license to practice that state’s law. See the Colorado rule explained and which federal court would hear your case.

Thinking about court? Start with the Full Read + Game Plan — whether litigation is the right tool is exactly the kind of question it answers, and the $1,000 is money spent understanding the case either way.

Last reviewed September 2026, and reviewed at least annually. Litigation fees are quoted case by case; your structure and fee are fixed in writing before any work begins. Court costs — filing, service, discovery, depositions, experts — are separate from attorney’s fees.

Attorney advertising. This page is general information only — not legal advice and not an offer of representation. Your scope and fee are set in a signed written agreement. Contacting me does not create an attorney–client relationship. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Zachary Gaynor, Esq., Fla. Bar No. 125534, Boca Raton, Florida.