As far as we know, Lindsay Lohan has been doing pretty well on her most recent probation stint. She’s been completing her community service hours on time—sometimes even early—and she’s generally stayed out of trouble. Sure, Radar Online ran a story a week or two ago stating that LiLo was “loaded” at a SAG Awards after-party, but since she’s now threatening to sue them over that, it may not be true. Oh, right, and there’s also that Betty Ford staffer who’s trying to sue LiLo for $1 million for assault. Those two instances aside, though, Lindsay is doing surprisingly well.

But there’s still one thing that I keep wondering: Throughout all of her troubles… exactly how much has Lindsay spent on legal fees? Shouldn’t she be going bankrupt by now?

Well, here’s something that may shed a little light on the subject. The Huffington Post recently had a chat with a couple of attorneys to get an estimate on roughly how much LiLo’s legal spending might add up to over the past four and a half years. Here’s what they said:

Criteria: According to attorney Vikki Ziegler, in order to make the estimation, we can generalize the amount of time, work and legal challenges, probation hearings, and court appearances accrued. Roughly, this number could come out to hundreds of thousands of dollars; it might even top a million.

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Retainer: Since LiLo’s cases are ongoing, which, HuffPo notes, is more typical of a corporate entity than a single star, her lawyers are almost certainly slapping a retainer on top of the hourly fees. “The retainer covers part of the case so that we can get started, but generally not all of the case,” attorney Joey Jackson told HuffPot. “The ultimate amount a client is charged gepends upon the nature of the case, its complexity, and the work involved (i.e. motions, hearings, trial expenses, etc.) Jackson’s estimation of Lindsay’s retainer? At least $50,000 each time she’s been sentenced to jail. So, we have a base cost of $250,000.

Hourly Rates: For high-profile defense attorneys, hourly rates can be as much as $600. PER HOUR. And given how long LiLo’s cases have been running, that adds up. Ziegler estimated that the $250,000 base rate might have quadrupled due to these super steep hourly rates, combined with the length of the case and the complications that arise while defending a celeb.

Rough Total: Take $250,000, multiply it by four… and you have a round $1,000,000. Good golly.

Wow. And apparently right now, Lindsay is only worth about $1.4 million. How long can she keep this up for?

Well, hopefully, she won’t have to keep it up for much longer; she’s due to complete her probation requirements by the end of March. Of course, someone else like the Betty Ford staffer could try to sue her, but that’s a bridge she’ll have to cross if and when she gets to it.

Food for thought.

Lucia Peters is BettyConfidential’s associate editor.