Commonly, when people call the office following an accident, they are concerned about a bunch of various things. One thing they are concerned about is the cost of a lawyer. They are afraid that while they were not at fault, they are not going to be able to hire a lawyer since they do not have the money to pay for such lawyer. However, one thing people may not realize is that under Florida law, contingency fee agreements are legal and therefore the lawyer may take their case on a contingency basis. A Contingency basis fee means that the lawyer fee would be recovered as a percentage of the settlement or verdict. Thus, if there was no settlement or verdict, under a contingency fee agreement, there is no lawyer fee. Similarly, if the settlement or verdict is a small amount, then the lawyer fee would be a percentage of that small amount. Under some of these contingency fee agreements, the costs are additional but they also are contingent on recovery. Thus, if there is no settlement or verdict then there would be fees OR costs owed by the client.
Of course, every case is unique and has to be judged based on the specific facts of the case. The advice in this blog is intended to be general in nature and should not to be construed as specific advice for a case, as a slight difference in the facts could ultimately change the result. Also, this blog is based on Florida law and the laws of any other states or another country could vary significantly from Florida.
When in doubt- consult such matters with an attorney.
