Generally, all lawyers that practice personal injury law (i.e. fight on behalf of injured clients), offer their services on a ‘contingent basis’. This means the lawyer will be paid only if there is a successful outcome – i.e. there is either a settlement with or a judgment against the person that caused your injuries. Usually the percentage rate that a lawyer will charge on ‘contingent’ files ranges from 30% to 40%.
In rare cases the range could be slightly higher or lower than this range. Generally what a lawyer charges as a percentage contingency rate depends upon the risk associated with the case (is liability in dispute – i.e. does the person that caused your injuries dispute that they were at fault), the experience of the lawyer who is taking on the case, and the seriousness of the injuries involved. The more money that the lawyer is able to obtain for you – either through settlement or through judgment after a trial – the more that both you and the lawyer will receive. The lawyer will usually pay for all treatment charts, medical reports, specialist expert medical examinations and other expert reports (such as economic experts who calculate past and future income loss). He will recover these costs from the settlement/judgment (they would have been claimed from the other side as part of your overall ‘damages’).