Tom McCutcheon – Attorney at Law
I had a couple of calls this week about last week’s article and what accident and injury lawyers charge.
Lawyers in divorce, criminal or commercial cases typically work on an hourly basis against a retainer. When the retainer is exhausted by hourly billing, the lawyer is then paid an additional amount of money so as to continue the representation. The client pays all costs such as expert witness fees, filing fees, deposition costs and in some cases paralegal charges.
Accident and injury lawyers typically work on a contingency fee basis. That means that at the end of the case, the attorney recovers the costs of litigation and receives a percentage of the amount of settlement or jury award. I think any straight forward accident case should be handled on a percentage basis where the lawyer agrees to pay the costs even if they lose. I’m always suspicious when an accident or injury case client is charged some upfront fee. If the case is genuine and the lawyer genuinely knows how to value the case, then there is no reason why there should be any retainer charged to a client.
In an average on-the-job injury case, a worker is injured and out of work. This is not the best time to start paying court costs and expert witness fees. On average, Joel and I have to spend around $3,000.00 to convince the other side or the judge that we can prove our case and our client deserves to win.
Automobile accident cases can be more expensive because liability is an issue in those cases and the expert witness fees are not limited to what physicians charge for their time in providing a summary of the client’s case and an opinion as to the cause of the injury. In some cases it is necessary to use medical drawings for the benefit of the jury. These are expensive. There are other experts such as life care planners or economists and an attorney may have $25,000.00 to $100,000.00 of their own money in a case. This money is necessary to show the dramatic impact that a serious injury causes. By the same token, if the case is lost, the attorney is out the money. It should be realized that most people don’t know the value of a case or what has to be proven or have that kind of money to pay for their own case. That’s why a contingency fee, as a percentage of the recovery, makes sense for everyone.
Buckle up and drive safely.
McCutcheon & Hamner, P.C.
2210 Helton Drive
Florence, Alabama 35630
Telephone: 256-764-0112
Facsimile: 256-349-2529
