Cost of Hiring a Personal Injury Lawyer

I’m Katelyn Holub, an attorney focusing on personal injury law in northwest Indiana.

Welcome to Personal Injury Primer, where we break down the law into simple terms, provide legal tips, and discuss topics related to personal injury law.

Today’s question comes from a caller inquiring as to how much it costs to hire a personal injury lawyer.

When you’ve been injured in a car crash, motorcycle accident, slip and fall, or due to a product defect, or other negligence situation, medical bills can mount up. Paying these bills can be a huge problem, especially if you cannot work due to your injury.

Hiring a personal injury attorney may be the only way to recover the compensation you deserve.

But how do you pay for an attorney?

Attorneys handling injury claims often work on a contingency fee basis. This means the client pays no attorney fee upfront.

The attorney is paid if there is a favorable jury verdict or settlement that the attorney obtains for you by presenting a compelling case. In a contingency fee agreement, payment for your attorney’s services is contingent upon you receiving compensation.

When working on a contingent fee basis, the attorney will receive a fixed percentage of the compensation you recover (often 33-1/3 %).

You will be responsible for expenses your legal team incurs to successfully resolve your case.

What is meant by expenses? These costs include:

• Accident reconstruction costs
• Expert costs
• Court filing fees
• Deposition Transcript Costs
• Travel costs
• Costs to obtain records to support the claim

Often attorneys advance all or a portion of these costs and expenses as they arise.

However, these expenses are deducted from your share of the settlement or court award after the case is won.

The contingency fee allows an injured party to hire a law firm and fight insurance carriers on a fair playing field.

I hope you found this information helpful. If you have questions about your legal rights if you get hurt due to the carelessness of another person, or as a result of substandard medical care, or due to a product defect, construction injury, or any other type of personal injury, please give us a call at (219) 736-9700. You can also learn more about us by visiting our website at www.DavidHolubLaw.com – while there make sure you request a copy of our book “Fighting for Truth”.