What Does A Vermont Personal Injury Lawyer Cost?

By Steven A. Bredice, Esq., Board Certified Civil Trial Specialist

Are you thinking about hiring a personal injury lawyer and uncertain about the cost and how the lawyer gets paid? Many folks are surprised to learn that a highly skilled personal injury attorney will cost them nothing up front.

You read that right. Your initial cost will be zero dollars.

Contingent Fee Agreements

Most Vermont personal injury lawyers agree to work for their clients without accepting any money up front. Instead, they are paid a share of the money recovered on your behalf at the end of the process. This is called a “contingent fee agreement.” The “contingency” is winning the case, either by settlement or through a lawsuit if no amicable agreement can be reached.

With a contingent fee agreement, your lawyer’s compensation is tied to performance, not the amount of time spent on working for you. The beauty of the arrangement is that this gives your lawyer a tremendous incentive to maximize your recovery. Your lawyer’s fate is tied to yours. If you win, your lawyer wins. If you lose, your lawyer loses. As a result, personal injury lawyers tend to have a lot invested in getting you the highest recovery in the shortest possible time.

This arrangement also enables you to avoid spending your own money or racking up unpaid legal bills on top of all of the other financial stressors injured people suddenly find themselves facing. With your cooperation, your lawyer does all the work and then, literally, puts a check in your hand to compensate you for the harms and losses you have suffered.

Personal Injury Lawsuit Expenses

Personal injury lawyers will even advance all of the expenses in your case – such as fees to obtain records, court filing fees, the cost of court reporters if depositions are needed, the charges required by expert witnesses, travel expenses and others—with the understanding that this will be reimbursed from the recovery you receive.

Experienced trial lawyers are highly skilled professionals with doctoral degrees in jurisprudence, and they can command several hundred dollars an hour for their time. This is why a contingency agreement represents an outstanding benefit to you. The value of the time and attention put into your case is very high, and you will receive the benefit of that time and attention because you have become a partner with the lawyer in fighting for a good result.

Simply put, the incentives of yourself and your lawyer will be aligned, and through this alignment you will both benefit.

Eliminates Bad Cases

Another benefit of contingent fee agreements is that it filters out bad cases. Since the lawyer’s compensation depends on the value of the case as presented in settlement, at mediation or through litigation, lawyers have a vested interest in being selective about which cases they accept and which cases they reject. This dynamic is enhanced by the fact that the lawyer is often spending his or her own money to fund your case as it goes along.

A Win-Win Situation

Good personal injury lawyers forge partnerships with their clients. We invest time and money into making sure they get the compensation they deserve for their injuries. Our compensation model works because it keeps the quality of service high and enables us to put money into our clients’ pockets rather than the other way around.

Learn What To Do After You’ve Been Injured in an Accident.

Our free guide, written by Vermont attorney Steven A. Bredice, will explain everything you need to know about protecting your legal rights after an accidental injury. No personal information required for the download!