May
30
I am going to be meeting with automobile accident & personal injury lawyers.
i was just wondering what the usual range a lawyer would ask for out of a settlement would be? I was thinking 20-30% but I dont really know much on the subject.
Thanks.
Are you thinking about selling your home yourself? then
Generally speaking, attorneys who work on a contingency basis (they only get paid if you collect) will keep a minimum of 1/3 or 33%. I’ve seen it as high as 40% if it’s a difficult case that they expect to take a long time to resolve.
Keep in mind, you may also be required to pay up-front costs such as deposition fees, investigator costs, filing fees, etc. depending on the law firm. This also depends on your state’s attorney ethics rules. Some states prohibit attorneys from fronting costs for clients since this puts them in the position of essentially loaning money to clients and may compromise their ability to be loyal to their client if they have a lot of cash invested in the case. This will obviously depend on your state.
All states require contingency fee agreements to be in writing.
Make sure that you know EXACTLY how and when your attorney will get paid. Some good questions to ask are:
1. What about costs (like I listed above)?
2. What if the insurance policy or the settlement does not cover all of the medical bills? Will the attorney negotiate with the doctors to reduce those bills or will you have to pay the remaining debts?
3. Does the fee change if the case goes to trial? (occassionally, attorneys will charge a lower percentage if it’s settled out of court and a higher fee if they have to take it to trial)
4. What about any potential appeal?
5. Is there an up-front "retainer" to cover costs?
Keep these questions in mind and if you are not satisfied with the answers, look for another attorney.
Best of luck.
1/3 which is 33%
usually 15% depends on the attorney
You should have a written contract, and it should say, because different lawyers figure it differently. And some states regulate it.
The norm is that the attorney gets a 33% fee, based on the recovery he got. Now, how that is figured is important. If the atty subtracts his costs prior to figuring his fee (the contract should say), then his fee is smaller than if he takes his fee out of the gross amount, and then subtracts his costs.
Some states regulate this fee. You can check on the state bar’s website more than likely.
** Note: This is a general discussion of the subject matter of your question and not legal advice. Local laws or your particular situation may change the general rules. For a specific answer to your question you should consult legal counsel with whom you can discuss all the facts of your case. Answering this question does not indicate an attorney-client relationship. **
25%-33%, with the ‘bottom-feeders’ usually taking only 25% to get your business, which means "Mo’ Money fo’ YOU!".
The lawyer will let you know in advance when you retain him what his fees consist of, but usually somewhere up to 40 percent.
This is more or less depends on the locality (ie, where you live). I would check with several attorneys where you live to get an idea. Where i live, it is about 33% if settled and more if it goes to trial. Good luck
It is negotiable, before the lawyer takes the case. The agreed percentage will depend on the likely judgment, the difficulty of the case, the likely need to put a great deal of time and money into the case and many other factors. Some will demand as much as 40 percent and others as little as 20 percent. One third is very common.