Typically, personal injury lawyers receive payment in the form of a contingency fee, meaning clients don’t have to pay until they reach a settlement. However, there are additional fees that might apply to your case, depending on what it entails.
If you would like help with a personal injury case in McHenry, Cook, Lake, or DuPage counties in Illinois, get in touch with Shindler & Shindler Injury Attorneys at 847-933-4448.
The majority of personal injury lawyers charge a contingency fee to represent clients, which applies to most common personal injury claims. This fee ensures that attorneys receive payment only when they reach a settlement. This fee and other legal fees are included in the total settlement amount, usually comprising around 33% in Illinois.
This fee structure encourages lawyers to determine whether a case is viable before taking it on, keeping the lawyer working in the client’s best interests. If the attorney doesn’t succeed with the case, he or she won’t receive payment.
At the same time, this structure will make attorneys look deeply into cases before providing representation. To increase the chances of successfully hiring an attorney, you should bring plenty of supporting documentation to your free consultation, including medical records, police reports, photos of injuries, and other documents proving the nature of your injuries and that the inciting incident caused them.
While personal injury lawyers normally charge a contingency fee for their services, there are other attorney fee structures.
These include:
Whenever you consult an attorney, he or she should be transparent about what you can expect to pay for legal services. Whether paying a contingency fee or another fee structure, a good lawyer will give you a good idea of how much the case will cost before proceeding.
In addition to contingency fees, attorneys might charge other fees for their services to ensure sufficient payment. In Illinois, the fee structure will vary from attorney to attorney, but it could be based on the following:
The length of time the attorney spends on the case could influence the overall cost. He or she may charge an hourly rate that accounts for this, which is why the attorney should disclose this amount before taking on your case.
Also ask your attorney, “Will my personal injury case go to trial?” If your attorney decides to proceed with a lawsuit and the case goes to court, the attorney should discuss court fees associated with this process.
Depending on the case, a fee waiver may apply to your lawsuit, in which case you wouldn’t need to pay a filing fee. For instance, a victim of domestic violence or in financial need may be able to benefit from this fee waiver.
Your attorney may also need to cover deposition fees when using witness statements to support your case. Depositions involve witnesses taking an oath before answering various questions pertaining to the case, including what they saw and the nature of the events leading up to a personal injury accident.
Court reporters often record these statements via transcripts, leading to court reporting fees that attorneys may need to pay.
If the lawyer needs to recover documents or resources for your case, he or she may also charge subpoena fees that cover the costs of obtaining them. For example, your attorney may need to summon witnesses by issuing subpoenas that bring them to court, or he or she may need to get certain documents from law enforcement or other sources.
In addition to court filing fees, you may also need to pay additional costs if your case goes to trial. Your attorney should disclose these expenses before proceeding with a trial or case.
If you reach a settlement with the help of an attorney, you might wonder, “How does an insurance company or another party pay out my settlement?” or “What percentage of a settlement does a lawyer get?”
In most cases, here is how the settlement process will work:
The total settlement will cover the different types of damages for which the client is suing, such as:
Your attorney should help calculate all these damages and incorporate them into the settlement amount before proceeding with a case. In the process, the attorney can negotiate to ensure the total settlement is what you’re able to recover, making counteroffers to insurers and other parties if the initial offer is too low.
Before the plaintiff’s attorney provides the client with settlement funds, he or she will also pay out any debts or liens owed to medical professionals, insurers, and other parties, often to prevent future legal issues from affecting the plaintiff.
A percentage of the settlement amount will go toward covering the attorney’s contingency and other applicable fees. While some clients may opt to pay this percentage in a lump sum, attorneys may also provide the option of making periodic payments over time.
For example, an attorney may collect periodic payments over a period of time if the client needs to make ongoing medical payments to treat a permanent injury.
To succeed with your case and only pay what you need to for reliable representation in a personal injury case, you must find the ideal attorney to be by your side.
The following are steps you can take to find an attorney who’s a good fit for you and your case:
When researching a personal injury lawyer, make sure the attorney has experience not just in personal injury, but in your practice area. For example, if you suffered an injury from a slip and fall accident, you’ll need to work with an attorney with experience handling slip and fall and other premises liability cases.
A good lawyer will advertise and readily discuss his or her experience.
You should also get a good feel for the attorney by asking various questions that apply to your case. The more you know about your attorney through this “interview,” the better you can assess whether the attorney is a good fit.
Some questions you can ask an attorney in a free consultation include:
Prepare a complete list of questions, and be sure to ask them to help you gauge the attorney based on his or her responses, potentially consulting and comparing multiple lawyers.
During an initial consultation, you should also ask about the cost of legal services. As mentioned, most personal injury lawyers charge a contingency fee. This means you won’t need to pay the attorney at all unless and until the lawyer succeeds with your case.
The lawyer should also mention additional fees you might need to pay through your settlement, giving you an idea of how much you’ll ultimately receive in a payout.
If you would like the help of an experienced Illinois personal injury lawyer to seek compensation from liable parties, contact us here at Shindler & Shindler Injury Attorneys to schedule a free consultation.
