A meeting does not create representation. Landlord/tenant cases in New Jersey sit in the Special Civil Part — they are civil matters. Related small-claims and Special Civil work lives on Civil. I take housing work the same way I take the rest of this practice: based on my case load and whether I believe the case. That relationship begins only after I have accepted the matter and we have both signed a written retainer.
Tenants
I generally stand with tenants.
I am generally pro tenants’ rights. That is a stance, not a slogan, and not a promise that I take every tenant who writes. If you are a tenant and the case is one I can stand behind, I will consider representing you. That can be a security-deposit demand, a habitability problem, an illegal lockout, or defending an eviction.
Security-deposit recovery for a tenant has published fees: a demand letter is $175; demand plus a complaint is $395; the same matter with an appearance is $650. In New Jersey, if a landlord misses the thirty-day window to return a deposit, a tenant can seek double recovery and attorney fees. That is the statute. It is not a result I can promise.
Tenant defense, habitability, and illegal-lockout strategy are quoted after a conversation. I have not settled a standardized published price for that work. Court costs and filing fees are extra.
Landlords
When an eviction is warranted, and I can stand behind it.
Sometimes a landlord really does need help to evict someone. I will take that work when it resonates and I believe the case. I will not take a landlord matter I cannot stand behind.
A landlord eviction — the complaint through one appearance, or a defined piece of that path — is quoted after a consult. There is no invented flat fee on this page for that work.
Leases and letters
A lease review for either side. A letter, not a closing.
I can review a residential lease for a tenant or a landlord and tell you what it does. That is quoted after I see the paper, unless the work fits the published real-estate review letter of $150 — one document set, one letter. That letter is not a closing, not negotiation, and not representation of the transaction.
When it is no longer limited-scope
Contested trials and lockouts that become plenary.
If a housing matter becomes a contested trial, or a lockout that turns into a plenary hearing, that is not a flat fee. That work is hourly at $275 through December 8, 2026 ($350 thereafter) with a retainer, on a limited basis, the same as other contested work I agree to take. I tell you before the fee changes.
I represent one party only. I will not represent the landlord and the tenant in the same matter.
I take all matters based on my case load and whether the case resonates with me. A meeting alone does not establish an attorney-client relationship. That relationship begins only after I have accepted the case and we have both signed a written retainer agreement.
See published housing-adjacent fees, including what is in and out →