Principles of the Legal Regulation of Attorney Fees

Attorney fees in Germany are generally regulated on the basis of a client–attorney contract, which is normally a contract for services (Dienstvertrag in the form of a Geschaftsbesorgungsvertrag), as defined by Section 675 of the German Civil Code [Burgerliches Gesetzbuch (BGB)]. Client obligation to provide remuneration is thus generally derived from Section 611 BGB. That provision, however, does not regulate the amount of the remuneration to be made in any particular case – the amount itself is determined by Section 612, sentence 2 BGB in conjunction with the Attorney Remuneration Ordinance [Rechtsanwaltsvergutungsgesetz (RVG)]. The amount of the remuneration (fees and expenses) is thus determined either on the basis of a client–attorney agreement or in accordance with Section 2, sentence 2 RVG and its attached list of itemized fees (supplement 1 to Section 2, sentence 2 RVG).