There are many different benefits to hiring personal injury lawyers like the professionals at Edward’s Injury Law. Of course, you are gaining access to the chief benefit of all lawyers, which is a deep and nuanced understanding of a particular facet of the complex and often overwhelming world of law.
Additionally, you gain access to a law professional who has your best interests at heart. You may think that all lawyers that you work with are similarly minded, and in general, they certainly are. However, there is something unique about personal injury lawyers, and it has to do with how they are paid.
The unique thing about personal injury lawyers and their payment methods is that they typically charge on a contingency basis. This means that their clients do not pay anything out of pocket. How does this work?
Personal Injury Lawyers Cost
Well, most personal injury cases rely on proving a separate party is at fault for your injuries. Whether this is a business, organization or individual is irrelevant. If you are in their care for a particular reason, and they fail to protect you, they may be responsible for your incident.
A good example of this would be employers and the Workers Compensation Board (WCB). Employers are legislated to ensure the safety of their employees and must reduce or eliminate the likelihood of potential hazards within the workplace. If they fail to have to clear the sidewalks of ice and you slip, for instance, they may be liable for any injuries endured as a result.
So, when you visit with a personal injury lawyer and discuss your case with them, they will likely offer to do the work on a contingency basis. Only after there is a settlement agreement from both pirates will your lawyer receive payment, which acts as both a motivating factor and a way to ensure your confidence in their abilities remains high.
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Still, though, we have not yet looked at just how much of your settlement the personal injury lawyer may be entitled to. For that, you should consider the two main “fees” their services will demand. The first fee is just their services payment, which is usually expressed as a percentage and varies between 30-40% of the total settlement.
The second charge that you are likely to pay your lawyer is the disbursements. Disbursement is really just a fancy term for administrative fees, but there is a bit more complexity with lawyers. This fee will include all of the filing costs with the court, office materials, postage, payments to other organizations (medical professionals, insurance companies, etc.) and so on and so forth.
Usually, these payments are added together, and the disbursements are itemized for clarity. It is also typical that your lawyer will have access to the money before you to ensure it is handled properly by a professional, meaning that your lawyer will be paid before you receive your compensation.
There is a lot more to the personal injury lawyer payment structure that we have not discussed, but these differences often get into jurisdictional and individual dissimilarities. Therefore we will not discuss them in detail here. However, one of the best ways to gain more knowledge about this industry is by speaking with an active professional. Consider seeking out a personal injury lawyer to learn more!