How Are Attorneys for Personal Injuries Paid?
When someone suffers a personal injury, it’s important for them to seek legal representation. In order to recover proper levels of compensation, they’ll need an experienced lawyer to handle the claims process. Insurance companies can be very challenging to deal with alone.
In personal injury cases, compensation is necessary for people to cover medical bills and help them cope with loss of income and a possibly-decreased quality of life.
Legal services require lots of time and expertise on the part of an attorney, though. That might leave people wondering: how are attorneys for personal injuries paid?
Who pays them? How much? When? These are important questions, which is why we put together this brief guide to help clear things up. And if you’re looking for more information, visit The Sandel Law Firm website.
How Are Attorneys Paid?
Attorneys are generally paid for their time or expertise. How each factor is calculated or factored in depends on the situation, attorney, state and more. Areas that are more populated tend to see lawyers charging higher rates, and depending on the attorney’s reputation or experience, rates can drastically vary.
There are four most-popular types of payment structures:
1. Flat fee2. Hourly fee3. Contingency fee4. Retainer fee.
For our purposes in this article, let’s focus on hourly rates and standard contingency fee arrangements. We find them to be most common and fair, at least for personal injury cases.
Hourly Fee Payment Arrangements
This is as straightforward as it sounds. In this scenario, think of a lawyer as an hourly wage employee. If they put in eight hours of work on your case, then you’ll pay them for eight hours. If they put in 100 hours, then you’ll pay them for all 100 of those hours.
Standard Contingency Fee Arrangements
In this scenario, an attorney gets paid only if they win your case. Otherwise, there’s no cost to the client. We think this is a fair set up, since it allows both parties to work together with the highest level of mutual interest. Generally, firms will take a percentage of your monetary judgment or settlement. This rate is usually between 25% and 33%, or between a quarter and a third of the money you receive.
Can a Lawyer Charge You Without Telling You?
It’s unlikely that a lawyer would ever be able to get away with charging a client without communicating the charge with them in some way ahead of time. To protect yourself, though, ensure you have a written fee agreement before you and your lawyer move forward together with the case. This is another reason why it’s important to work with an ethical, experienced law firm. That way, you’ll know the attorneys who are representing you have your best interest at heart.
If you’re looking for a law firm with an excellent reputation, then look no further. The Sandel Law Firm serves the communities in Cleveland and Akron, Ohio to the highest standards. Read our testimonials to see for yourself.
If you’ve suffered a personal injury, make sure you reach out to receive legal representation. Otherwise, the insurance company involved with your case will work its hardest to pay you nothing. We won’t stand for that. Contact us at The Sandel Law Firm today! Your free consultation awaits.