What Do Personal Injury Lawyers Charge?
In determining what personal injury lawyers charge, you have to look to the specific engagement letter or contract for each personal injury lawyer or law firm. Most personal injury lawyers charge a fee known as a Contingency Fee. This means that the lawyer or law firm only gets paid if they are able to reach a settlement or jury verdict in your favor. Then, the lawyer will be paid in accordance with the contract you signed with them.
What Is The Contingency Fee?
For most personal injury law firms, the contingency fee is one-third of the gross settlement proceeds. So, one question is what do personal injury lawyers charge if you win your case? The answer depends on how much you won. For instance, if you reach a settlement for $30,000, the personal injury lawyer’s fee will be $10,000. In addition to the one-third, the lawyer’s contract will typically call for the law firm to be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses. Provided the claim was settled prior to being filed as a lawsuit, those expenses are usually minimal and amount to small fees paid to third parties to obtain medical records and medical bills.
Is A Contingency Fee Good For The Client?
We like a contingency fee for several reasons. First, it gives the client access to legal representation without having to write a check to a lawyer. Second, if the lawyer is only going to get paid if they are able to successfully settle your case, it’s safe to assume the lawyer believes in your case. In other words, if the lawyer is willing to represent you without payment upfront, they believe they will ultimately be able to recover something for you. For the client, this takes the pain and mystery out of paying a lawyer by the hour for a case you may never win.
Additionally, at some point during negotiations, your personal injury lawyer will probably tell you when they believe you should accept the current settlement offer, or reject the offer and file a lawsuit. Once again, because the lawyer only gets paid if you get paid, you can trust the lawyer’s judgment. A lawyer working and getting paid by the hour could potentially continue working on your case even though they did not feel you would prevail. We believe this instills inherent trust in the lawyer-client relationship as we move forward with each case.
Why Are Lawyers Willing To Work For A Contingency Fee?
Lawyers know that most people do not have money set aside to pay for a lawyer to fight for them in a personal injury case. This doesn’t mean the injured party doesn’t deserve representation. The contingency fee was most likely conceived of to help address this catch-22 situation. What do personal injury lawyers charge if you lose? Well, usually nothing. That is the risk the lawyer takes when deciding whether to represent a client in a personal injury claim. There will be plenty of cases where the law firm works diligently and is unable to recover anything for the client. Fortunately, those cases which do work out for both the client and the lawyer tend to balance out the equation.
Who Gets The Remainder Of The Settlement?
Your personal injury lawyer’s fee is subtracted from the gross settlement. Then, any negotiated medical bills and medical liens are deducted. The remainder is yours. Your personal injury lawyer will discuss all of the numbers with you before agreeing to a settlement. This way, you can be sure of exactly how much you will receive from the settlement, before agreeing to settle the case.
Speak With A Charlotte Personal Injury Lawyer Today
If you would like to speak with an attorney about your personal injury case, we’re here to help. The call is free and you will come away with a much better understanding of your options. You can reach us at 704.749.7747 or click to request a FREE CASE EVALUATION, and we will be in touch shortly.
Further Reading
If this article was helpful, you may find other helpful articles on our Personal Injury Blog. Thank you for visiting the website—we hope it has been helpful.