The word “contingent” means “conditioned. When this phrase is used in relation to personal injury matters, it typically means that the lawyer’s fee is conditioned on the outcome of the case. This is a common way that personal injury attorneys are paid.
How Do Personal Injury Lawyers Get Paid?
Many lawyers work on an hourly basis. They set a rate, which could be anywhere from $150 to $1,000+. They perform the legal services. They send the client a bill for the number of hours they worked on the legal matter multiplied by their hourly rate. Here is an example:
The lawyer works on a contract for three hours. They charge $500 an hour. They send the client a bill for $1,500.
The more hours the lawyer works, the more expensive the legal fees will be.
Other attorneys might require clients to pay a considerable amount of money upfront before they will begin any work on the case. This is known as a retainer. Once the attorney exhausts the retainer, they may demand another retainer or switch to an hourly rate.
This business model does not work for personal injury victims for several reasons, including:
- They weren’t anticipating getting hurt and needing legal services.
- They might not have adequate savings to pay for legal services upfront.
- They might have suffered injuries that prevent them from working and earning an income.
- They don’t want to risk paying a lawyer when they are already suffering financially due to lost wages, unexpected medical bills, and property repairs.
How a Contingency Fee Arrangement Works
Fortunately, personal injury victims may be able to avoid the issues caused by the traditional lawyer payment model by entering into a contingency fee arrangement. Under this type of fee arrangement, an attorney gets to work on a case immediately. They don’t charge for their legal services unless and until they reach a successful outcome in the case. For personal injury cases, this usually means securing a settlement or winning in court.
With this fee agreement, the attorney does not charge for their time if they do not win the case. Instead, they agree to take on the case with no guarantee of payment for their services. If they do win, they receive a percentage of the winnings, which is outlined in their client agreement.
For example, they might accept a car accident case with a 33% fee. If they secure a settlement of $100,000, they would be entitled to $33,000. The client may be responsible for legal costs, as well as the attorney’s fees, which are the costs to pursue the claim, such as:
- Accident report retrieval fees
- Medical records fees
- Expert witness fees
- Postage
- Investigative costs
- Travel expenses
- Court filing fees
- Deposition and court reporter fees
Learn More About Our Contingency Fee Arrangement
At the Miller & Steele Law Firm, we believe in transparent pricing for our services. We can discuss our contingency fee arrangements in more detail during your free, no-obligation consultation. Contact us today to get started.