Contingency fees offer personal injury clients a valuable advantage. They enable anyone who suffers an injury to bring a lawsuit without having the money up-front to pay an attorney. With contingency fees, attorneys agree to accept a portion of the recovery and agree that if the client does not win or does not get a recovery, there will be no fees or costs.
Why does the contingent-fee system serve clients and work so well? Contingency fees . . .
Why does the contingent-fee system serve clients and work so well? Contingency fees . . .
- give everyone--regardless of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, gender, marital status, age or other factors--an equal chance to have their day in court to address their injuries, no matter what their financial resources may be. Individuals with limited assets can sue the richest, most powerful corporations, which often have unlimited money for legal defense fees.
- promote efficiency and discourage frivolous lawsuits by motivating lawyers to make sure that the cases they accept have legitimacy and merit.
- are fair since there is no cost to the client unless he or she wins.
- discourage wrong does, like drunk drivers or uninsured motorists, from continuing inappropriate behavior.
- allow attorneys to front the costs for experts in all fields appropriate to help prove negligence or malicious conduct by the other side--from slip and falls, elder abuse, car accidents, trucking accidents or disability violations, regardless of whether the injuries were minor or catastrophic.
