Yeah, the retainers can be a doozy! You might be able to recoup legal fees by having your attny petition the court for an immediate reimbursement of your legal fees (that is what I did!).
My mom opened up a retirement account for me to pay my retainer (it was part of my late father's estate so the money was sort of earmarked for me anyhow but this is NOT how I wanted to use it). My attny suggested I NOT take the money from joint funds to better exhibit my inability to pay for legal counsel.
Anyhow, we "won" and my H not only had to pay ALL my legal fees but he also had to pay my mom the money she took out to get my retainer.
Not that you want to have to do this but I think most attnys take credit cards. It will have your line of credit tied up for a while but it's better than having to source all liquid cash!
This part of the process (retaining counsel and proceeding forward) can be VERY overwhelming in this state. I am here, I can relate to how difficult it can be!
