About us

Do you offer virtual consultations?

If you are unable to make it to our Dandenong office, we are able to do online or telephone meetings. We quite frequently do this when clients are interstate, overseas, or it simply isn’t practical for us to meet in person.

What are your business hours?

Our office is open from 9.30am - 5.30pm Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays). We are available on Saturdays and afterhours by appointment.

If you have an urgent matter, we will try to assist, even if it is afterhours.

Do I need an appointment, or do you accept walk-ins?

It is preferable to make an appointment, in case our lawyers are with other clients, stuck in meetings, or out making court appearances. We are however more than happy to see walk-ins if we are available.

Fees and costs

Do you charge for an initial consultation?

We charge for an initial 1 hour appointment with our senior lawyer. If you do decide to use us, we are more than happy to offset this fee against any future cost.

Why do we charge a first consultation fee when some lawyers do not? We like to give you a comprehensive analysis of your situation and a complete strategy on how to manage the matter. This is done by our senior lawyer. We do not want to ‘string you along’ - at the end of the meeting, you should know exactly where you stand and what steps can be taken.

Do you offer fixed-fee services?

We primarily operate using a fixed fee model. We believe that this offers greater transparency to our clients. Where possible, we try to provide a breakdown of costs at each stage of the matter, so that you know exactly what costs to expect and when to expect them.

What is “no-win, no-fee” and do you offer it?

We generally do not offer this. This model is used is certain limited scenarios and is a bit of a misnomer.

Contrary to popular belief, there are often still out of pocket costs to pay (barristers fees, specialists reports, court costs, etc), and once legal fees are charged upon success, you may be left with very little at the end of the day. Are there alternative ways to run a case and give you a great outcome? Absolutely - contact us to find out how.

Encompass Legal is also accredited with JustFund. JustFund provides flexible legal funding for family law and estates clients. Feel free to ask us for more information and to find out how they may be able to fund your legal fees and associated costs.

Are there additional costs?

Depending on your matter, there could be other out of pocket costs. These could include service costs/postage, court costs, filing fees and specialist reports. We will outline these to you at the outset.

Getting the most from your lawyer

What information should I bring to my consultation?

Bring along any documents that are relevant to your case - we will let you know of these in advance. These can include any official paperwork received from the courts or government departments, evidence/correspondence related to any dispute and contracts to be reviewed. If in doubt, bring it along.

In addition to this, you should bring identity documents such as a passport or birth certificate, any visa documents and your driver’s licence.

Will I work directly with a lawyer or a legal team?

Your consultation will be with our senior lawyer. The majority of the work will be done by the lawyer that you meet with, with the support of Barristers, industry experts and skilled admin staff where required. You will have control and know who is involved in your matter at every step.