Court and Lawyer Fees in Germany 2026: RVG and GKG Fee Tables by Amount in Dispute

If the parties settle, a settlement fee is added (1.0 in pending proceedings). With €10,000 in dispute, that is another €652 net.

4. The RVG Explained: How German Lawyers Charge

The RVG sets what lawyers in Germany may charge unless a different fee has been agreed. It has two parts: the act itself with the fee table (§ 13 RVG and Annex 2) and the fee schedule (Vergütungsverzeichnis, VV RVG, Annex 1). The fee schedule defines which fee applies to which work, and at what rate.

Value-based fees: amount in dispute × rate

Most lawyer fees are value-based. You take the basic fee for the amount in dispute from the table and multiply it by the rate from the fee schedule. Example: procedural fee 1.3 at €10,000 = 1.3 × €652 = €847.60. In criminal, regulatory-offence and many social-security cases, fixed fee ranges apply instead.

VV RVG: the main fees in the RVG fee schedule

Business fee for out-of-court work and how it is credited

If the lawyer first writes to the other side out of court, the business fee arises, normally at 1.3. The lawyer may charge more than 1.3 only if the matter was extensive or difficult. If a lawsuit follows, half of the business fee, at most 0.75, is credited against the procedural fee (Preliminary Note 3(4) VV RVG).

Example at €10,000: the business fee 1.3 is €847.60 (€867.60 net with the allowance). In the lawsuit that follows, the procedural fee of €847.60 is reduced by 0.65 × €652 = €423.80. In the end, the out-of-court work costs only half a fee extra.

Settlement fee

The settlement fee rewards the lawyer for ending a dispute by agreement. Without court proceedings it is 1.5, in pending proceedings 1.0, on appeal 1.3. Because the court fee drops at the same time, a first-instance settlement is often still cheaper than a judgment for both sides (see the example below).

Expenses and VAT

On top of the fees, lawyers charge expenses: the postage and telecommunications allowance (20% of the fees, at most €20), copies, travel costs and 19% VAT. If the other side is a business entitled to deduct input VAT, it is reimbursed only the net amounts when it wins.

Fee agreements, hourly rates and contingency fees

Lawyer and client can agree on a different fee, such as an hourly rate or a flat fee. The agreement must be made in text form (§ 3a RVG). In court proceedings it may not fall below the statutory fees (§ 4 RVG, § 49b BRAO). There is no statutory maximum hourly rate. The other side, however, only ever reimburses the statutory RVG fees, so an agreed fee above them stays with the client even after a win.

Contingency fees are allowed only in exceptional cases, for example for money claims up to €2,000 or if the client would otherwise be kept from pursuing the claim (§ 4a RVG).

Initial consultation

For a first consultation with a consumer, a lawyer may charge at most €190 net without a fee agreement, and at most €250 for further advice (§ 34 RVG).

The 2025 RVG increase: what changed

On 1 June 2025, the Costs and Guardian Remuneration Amendment Act (KostBRÄG 2025) raised the value-based RVG fees by around 6% and court fees by 6 to 9%. It was the first adjustment since 2021. For mandates given before 1 June 2025, the old table still applies (§ 60 RVG). [Check before publishing: no further adjustment adopted for 2027.]

5. Old RVG and GKG Tables 2021 (until 31 May 2025)

The old 2021 table has not disappeared completely. If the client instructed the lawyer before 1 June 2025, the lawyer still charges the old values (§ 60 RVG). For court fees, the old law applies if the proceedings were filed before 1 June 2025; an appeal filed after that date falls under the new table (§ 71 GKG).

The old values are from the version in force from 1 January 2021 to 31 May 2025 (KostRÄG 2021).

6. How Much Does a Lawsuit Cost in Germany? Cost Risk by Instance

Germany follows the loser-pays rule: whoever loses pays the court costs and both lawyers. The table shows this cost risk including VAT, without witness and expert costs:

Calculation: first instance = GKG 3.0 + per lawyer 2.5 fees + €20. Appeal = GKG 4.0 + per lawyer 1.6 + 1.2 + €20. Federal Court of Justice = GKG 5.0 + per BGH lawyer 2.3 + 1.5 + €20, each with 19% VAT on the lawyer fees.

Your own cost risk: the litigation cost calculator uses your amount in dispute and shows every instance.

Example at 10,000 euros: judgment, settlement or withdrawal

For the claimant, the settlement is around €1,900 cheaper than losing at judgment, but more expensive than winning, where the other side bears everything.

Example at 100,000 euros: two instances

A company sues for €100,000, loses at first instance and appeals, and loses again. The first instance costs €14,083.85, the appeal another €16,534.92. In total the claimant bears over €30,600 – almost a third of the amount claimed, before any expert costs.

7. Who Pays the Costs in a German Lawsuit?

The rule: loser pays

The losing party bears the costs of the proceedings, including the other side’s necessary lawyer fees (§ 91 ZPO). If each side wins in part, the costs are split in proportion (§ 92 ZPO). A party that recovers 60% of its claim usually bears 40% of the costs.

What happens if you lose a case and how to protect yourself is explained in Litigation funding: what happens if you lose?.

In a settlement

The parties decide in the settlement who bears which costs. If the settlement says nothing, each side bears its own costs (§ 98 ZPO): everyone pays their own lawyer, and the court costs are split.

Getting your costs back: the cost assessment application

After the judgment, the other side does not pay automatically. The winner files an application for assessment of costs (Kostenfestsetzungsantrag, §§ 103, 104 ZPO) with the first-instance court, listing its costs. The court fixes the amount in a cost assessment order, which can be enforced. The amount bears interest at 5 percentage points above the base rate from the date the application is received. An advance on court fees the winner paid is included.

8. How the Amount in Dispute Is Set

Every fee depends on the amount in dispute. In court proceedings it is called Streitwert, in the RVG Gegenstandswert; they usually mean the same.

If the debtor objects and the matter goes to court, both fees are credited against the fees of the lawsuit.

Labour court

Before the labour court, the first-instance court fee is 2.0 instead of 3.0 (No. 8210 of the GKG cost schedule). It is waived entirely if the case ends in a court settlement, and no advance is required. Important: in the first instance, each side pays its own lawyer, even if it wins (§ 12a ArbGG).

Example, unfair dismissal claim with a gross salary of €4,000: amount in dispute €12,000, court fee €627 (waived on settlement), lawyer around €2,127 per side including VAT.

Family court and divorce

Family matters fall under the FamGKG, whose fee table matches the GKG table. A divorce carries 2.0 court fees (No. 1110 of the FamGKG cost schedule). Example with a combined net income of €4,000: value of the proceedings €12,000, court costs €627, lawyer around €2,127 including VAT. Pension rights adjustment increases the value.

10. Legal Aid: the § 49 RVG Fee Table

If you cannot afford the costs and your case has reasonable prospects of success, you can apply for legal aid (Prozesskostenhilfe, §§ 114 et seq. ZPO). The state then covers your own court and lawyer costs in full or in instalments. Legal aid does not cover the other side’s lawyer fees if you lose.

The lawyer assigned under legal aid is paid from the state treasury. Up to a value of €4,000, the fees are the same as in the normal RVG table; above that, the lower values of § 49 RVG apply. Above €80,000 they do not rise any further.

If the party with legal aid wins, its lawyer can claim the full fee under § 13 RVG from the losing side.

11. When the Cost Risk Is Too High

There are three ways to avoid bearing the costs of a lawsuit yourself. Our guide to litigation financing options compares them in detail.

• Legal aid: for people on low incomes; it does not cover the other side’s costs if you lose.
• Legal expenses insurance: pays if the policy existed before the dispute arose and the area of law is covered. See Litigation funding or legal expenses insurance.
• Litigation funding: from an amount in dispute of around 100,000 euros – in mass claims also below – litigation funding is an option. The funder pays the court and lawyer fees and bears the entire cost risk if the case is lost, in the example above over 30,000 euros for two instances. Litigation funders on the market usually receive 20 to 40 percent of the amount recovered; at AEQUIFIN, the share is set for each case in a bidding process among sponsors (Quotenbalancing).

High amount in dispute, high cost risk?

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12. Sources (in German)

• 34 GKG with Annex 2 (fee table)
• GKG cost schedule (Annex 1)
• 13 RVG with Annex 2 (fee table)
• RVG fee schedule (Annex 1)
• 91 ZPO, § 98 ZPO, § 104 ZPO
• 49 RVG (fees under legal aid), § 60 RVG, § 71 GKG
• 12a ArbGG

No liability is accepted for the accuracy of this information. The examples show the statutory fees; agreed fees, witness and expert costs are not included. This page does not replace legal advice.