A reputable car accident lawyer would receive around a third of the award you received in a car accident settlement. However, under a contingency agreement, your lawyer would only get paid if the case were successful.
Remember that under a contingency agreement, if your lawyer doesn’t win your case for you, you don’t owe the lawyer anything.
Make Sure You Know How Your Lawyer Is Paid
The first thing to realize when you are seeking the best car accident lawyer for your case is that you should never be left to wonder how your lawyer gets paid. Before you sign a contract and hire a lawyer, you should be fully aware of the cost. You shouldn’t be confused about any aspect of payment.
Your potential attorney should explain the fee and how they’ll get paid. If it’s not clear, you must ask your potential lawyer. If you still are confused, it may be a sign that you need to look for a different attorney.
How a Contingency Agreement Works
Most car accident lawyers will accept your case under a contingency agreement. Under this payment method, the lawyer doesn’t charge anything upfront and is only compensated if the case is won.
A lawyer would usually receive around 33% of the settlement award that a car insurance company provided through a settlement or court judgment. This fee is set because the lawyer usually takes on all of the risks for your case. Your attorney covers all legal fees and investigative costs to build a strong case for you. Your lawyer would front the payment for accident reconstruction teams and expert witnesses if necessary.
These advanced tactics would be necessary if a car accident provider refused to acknowledge the facts and refused to take liability for everything you’ve been through. An insurance adjuster may attempt to blame you for the accident or may question the severity of your injuries. The accident evidence and medical records will be vital to forcing the car insurance company to accept responsibility.
How Does My California Car Accident Lawyer Get Paid?
This process of building a car accident case and fighting auto insurers can cost a lot of money. The law firm you work with takes on these expenses with no guarantee that they’ll be reimbursed. If your case falls through for some reason, a lawyer could lose a considerable amount of money.
If successful, the lawyer receives a portion of your car accident settlement check as payment. The fee would come out of the settlement check before that money was provided to you. Some investigative costs may also be reimbursed.
The idea is that a skilled lawyer can often earn you far more for your case than you could have if you filled your case alone. This award should be enough to pay the lawyer for the work done, and still provide the patient with much more in support for the future.
If lawyers don’t feel they can increase the amount a car accident victim takes home, they should alert a potential client of this possibility. In this case, a trustworthy lawyer would direct you on how to file the case yourself so that you could keep more of any settlement you received.
When Can a Car Accident Lawyer Earn Me More in Support?
If your accident only involved property damage or only very minor injuries, you probably won’t need a lawyer to handle your case to get fair treatment.
However, if your accident involves a serious injury, like a broken bone or head trauma, a lawyer may be an important protection for your case. With the higher medical bills, insurance adjusters will work overtime to shift blame in the case. They’ll definitely work to limit the support you receive or to reject your case completely.
Your attorney can definitely help you prove your innocence and keep the finger of blame on the at-fault driver. Then your lawyer uses powerful negotiation skills to demand the maximum in support available for your family. It’s a level of support that most accident victims won’t know to fight for.
Contact a California Car Accident Lawyer
Speak with a skilled California car accident lawyer after any traffic collision caused by a careless driver that leaves you with a serious injury. It’s important to know about every benefit available to you and your family because an insurance representative won’t be informing you about your options.
Contact Maison Law for a free, no-obligation consultation. It’s a no-risk way to find out what your injury is worth and what you should be holding an insurance company to.
