Plain-words guide

What does it cost to have a lawyer review a severance agreement?

We checked real published prices from employment law firms in October 2026 — not guesses. Here is the going rate, what it buys, and the honest line between 'the $49 kit covers this' and 'pay the lawyer'.

The going rate, verified

Firm / city	Published price	What it covers
Thompson Legal, Kentucky / Ohio	$350 flat	Review plus a consultation call
Morris E. Fischer, Maryland / DC	$450 flat	Review plus advice call
Cramer Law Firm, Chicago	$750 flat	Severance review
Chun Disability & Employment Law, San Diego	$995 / $1,495 / $1,950	Three tiers by package size; $595/hr beyond

Prices as published on the firms' own pages, checked October 2026. Your city's prices will differ; the shape — a flat fee of a few hundred dollars for the read — is consistent.

What the flat fee actually buys

A read of your agreement by someone who reads them daily, a call to walk through what they found, and — often the real value — a judgment about whether your facts (a recent complaint, a pattern in the layoff, equity on the table) change what you should do. What it usually does not buy: the lawyer negotiating for you (that is a separate, larger engagement), or a second document review after changes.

When the paid hour is worth it

Pay it when: you recently complained about discrimination, harassment, safety, or wages; you took protected leave or asked for disability accommodation shortly before the layoff; the package is large (roughly $50,000+) or carries meaningful stock; the group layoff list (Exhibit A) suggests older workers were targeted; a non-compete would block your next job; or you are owed wages, overtime, or commissions the paper ignores. Those are facts, not documents — and facts are what lawyers price.

When it is not

A standard package, a clean record, no equity, no non-compete (or one your state voids anyway): the work is reading carefully, checking the paperwork against the law's list, and asking for the movable items. That is exactly the work the $49 kit systematizes — the same checklist discipline, in plain words, at a tenth of the cheapest flat fee. The kit's red-flag page exists so you can tell which situation you are in before spending anything.

Go deeper

Included in the $49 SeveranceDecoded Kit

The clause-by-clause decoder — every clause in plain words: what it means, what to look for, the exact questions to raise
The paperwork audit (the legal checklist) — every item the law names for workers 40+, checked against your documents
The group layoff list audit (Exhibit A) — titles and ages of who was picked and who was not, checked line by line. No other tool does this
The negotiation playbook — what companies actually move on (money, dates, stock deadlines, the non-compete, your reference) and the words that move them
Ready-to-send scripts: asking for more time, asking for changes, and the change-your-mind letter (revocation)
The red-flag page — the short list of facts that mean a lawyer's paid hour is worth it, and how to find one who does this daily

Get the SeveranceDecoded Kit — $49

One payment. Yours to keep. Works for any severance agreement, any state.