Usually, hiring a lawyer costs you money just like hiring any other kind of professional would. Attorneys can charge a retainer fee or charge clients by the hour, but this is actually a rarity when it comes to personal injury cases. If you get hurt in an accident and decide to sue, you do not pay anything upfront when you choose our law firm. Instead, you only have to worry about paying us a contingency fee when a New Jersey dog bite lawyer from our firm wins your case for you.
What is a Contingency Fee?
A contingency fee is a payment that gets made when a certain event happens. In the case of personal injury cases, that means that you will not pay your attorney until they win your case for you. Once a settlement is reached or a verdict is handed down, your lawyer will take their payment from your awarded damages.
How Much Will I Pay?
The cost of hiring a lawyer can vary. When it comes to contingency fees, the agreement is usually for a certain percentage of the settlement that the lawyer helps you win. A lawyer might ask for 25% or 33%. Your lawyer might also take a larger percentage of a settlement if the case seems like it will be more work for them and more difficult to win.
There could be some kind of sliding scale arrangement that means that they get different percentages of your settlement depending on how large it grows. For example, a lawyer might ask for 40% of the first $10,000 of your settlement and 25% of everything after that. All of this will be clearly spelled out for you when you decide to hire a lawyer. It’s also important to note that you may also have to pay some other fees, like filing fees and other court expenses, whether you win or lose.
Why is a Contingency Fee Arrangement Used For Personal Injury Cases?
The contingency fee is a common form of payment arrangement in personal injury cases because a victim’s resources should never prevent them from holding someone who harmed them accountable. If a personal injury lawyer charges money upfront, a victim may not have enough to pay them, especially if they had major medical expenses and missed work due to their accident.
The fee is only collected once the case is won, so the victim can sue without worrying that they will be out a significant sum of money if they lose. This gives them the chance to stand up to any negligent parties and fight for the compensation they deserve.
Contact a Law Firm Today
So do not worry about money right now if you think that you have a valid personal injury case to pursue. Instead, contact the Law Office of Craig M. Rothenberg and set up a consultation with our team. We can tell you more about the potential value of your case and what our attorneys can do to be of assistance.
