What it is, Why It's Important

A question that runs through people's minds when they are thinking about hiring a lawyer is, "How will I pay for it all?" The answer for most personal injury and medical malpractice cases is the contingency fee system. With this arrangement, rather than pay a flat or hourly rate to the attorney, the client agrees to pay the attorney a percentage of any recovery in the case. Usually that fee ranges from 25% to 45% of the recovery in the case. That doesn't mean, however, that you won't have to pay anything to the lawyer as the case moves along. In every case, there are costs. For instance, someone must pay for the medical records, trial exhibits and meetings with doctors. In most cases, the client pays for the costs as they are incurred by the attorney. In our office, we handle costs on a case-by-case basis. Some of our catastrophically injured clients are in no position to advance costs and we understand this. So, how does the contingent fee system impact the client? First, it means that most lawyers are going to assess the risks of accepting a case carefully. Contrary to what you may hear in the media, the fact that a lawyer is going to be paid a percentage of any recovery actually discourages frivolous litigation. No lawyer in his right mind is going to take on a frivolous case and then work hundreds of hours on it for ZERO payment. For the client, the contingency fee is often the key to the courthouse. Because there is risk sharing, you can have a very experienced attorney represent you and not have to worry about the bill for legal fees.