When you have had an accident, loss, or damages from an accident, you will want to call a personal injury lawyer to handle your case. It is not the time to seek and get advice from your friends, neighbors, family members, and coworkers – who know nothing about the law. You will be working with a personal injury lawyer, who will review your case with you and explain the next steps to find a way to settle your claim to get you the money you need to recover your losses and damages.
A lawyer will charge a certain fee for services. This will be explained to you once you talk to the lawyer about your case and determine that you want the lawyer to represent you. If you agree to be represented by that lawyer, you will be signing a fee agreement with the attorney. It is a letter and agreement stating that you want that attorney to represent you on this particular case.
The letter of representation that the lawyer will want you to sign states that you want that particular lawyer to represent you on this claim. There will also be a fee agreement, including expenses that the lawyer will incur to investigate, research and manage the case to a successful conclusion for you. You need to review, read and agree to this agreement between yourself and the lawyer before signing it. Once you sign it, it is a binding and legal contract between you and the lawyer.
It is not unusual that a case could go to court because it can proceed to court quite easily. In many cases, it will be rare for a case to proceed to court when it can be settled out of court between the lawyer and the insurance company representing the wrongdoer in this case.
Every lawyer should know what to do if a case does not settle with an insurance company. If it needs to go to court, then the lawyer you choose to represent you needs to know how to go to court and win the case in your favor.
The contingency fee arrangement or agreement is where the client (you) agree that you will give the attorney a portion of the settlement once it is achieved. This is always agreed to beforehand and will be a fee or a “cut” from the winnings that the lawyer will take off the top of the settlement package to you. The usual fee for winning a case will be upwards of 30% to 40% of the settlement, and the expenses will also need to come out of that total. This way, you will not need to pay a lawyer upfront for the fees that are the billable hours for the lawyer’s time working on a case for you.
Let’s say that the contingency agreement is for the lawyer’s fee of 35%. There will also be expenses and possible court filing fees that will also get added to this amount, but we will wait a bit for that. If the lawyer settles your personal injury claim for $500,000, that is not the amount of money and recovery reimbursement you will get for the loss. Instead, you will get $500,000 minus the lawyer’s “cut” off the top. The calculation will be $500,000 minus 35%, which equals to $175,000. Therefore, your total settlement from the case will be $500,000 minus $175,000, which is $325,000. In essence, you will “win” the case for $325,000, which will be your total settlement.
Let’s take a step back from this and review it logically. If a lawyer is in agreement to take on your case, and that individual agrees to work with you on the claim, then the lawyer needs to be paid for the services rendered to get the case settled. Lawyers make a wide range of money per case, and if you have an experienced lawyer working on the case for you, the money is well spent.
Lawyers can work with insurance companies and get them to settle for fair amounts. This is especially important in cases with serious personal injuries for the client. If you have suffered serious or debilitating personal injuries, you will note that it is worth it to get the money that you deserve in the case. You will have an easier time getting the money you deserve if you use a lawyer instead of trying to negotiate this amount on your own.
If the lawyer can get a full settlement package to reimburse you for your expenses, medical bills, and personal injuries, isn’t it worth what you pay the lawyer to get the job done? An argument can be made that it is worth it. If you do not have a lawyer, the insurance companies can “walk all over you” and settle your case for the smallest amount possible.
It is a myth that insurance companies do not want to settle claims. They want to settle claims, and they want to settle them as fast as possible! Insurance companies have claims representatives, who are, for the most part, underpaid and overworked. They have many claim files, with claims that all need to be settled. They want to put your claim behind them as fast as possible. That is why they will try to “low ball” the claim with you if you are inexperienced and want to settle the claim yourself without an attorney.
When you hire an attorney who is knowledgeable in how the big insurance companies work, you will be able to get a settlement that is quick and also fair to you. You will be in the best position to recover compensation that will meet your needs and will be able to pay the mounting medical bills that will come as a result of your accident and losses. It will be worth it to let an experienced lawyer work for you to get the money that you deserve; otherwise, you will lose your one shot to get this reimbursement from the insurer of the person who caused your accident.
We will be able to discuss this case with you, determine the exact nature of the legal fees for your claim, and help you build this case to find out if you can recover compensation for your losses. We know how to talk to big insurance companies on your behalf to get you the settlement you need to be made whole again. Just give us a call at the CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm right now. We are here for you every step of the way. Call us at (833) 254-2923 today to discuss your legal issues with an expert injury and accident attorney on our team.