Personal injury lawyers could be expensive, but how much is their average cost in Fayetteville? Are you injured due to the negligence of another person? This could be about getting injured in a car accident, truck accident, slip and fall accident, or anything else. It may also be about being a victim of faulty or malpractice products that could be medical related or any other equipment.
If your injuries fall under a personal injury case, you can actually file a lawsuit with the help of a personal injury lawyer. This is when you would want to know the cost of hiring a Fayetteville personal injury attorney.
Have you heard of product liability cases? They fall under the personal injury cases as well.
What are personal injury cases?
Personal injury cases are cases wherein the plaintiff (the victim) demands compensation for the losses incurred due to the other party’s negligence (the defendant).
For instance, in a car accident, the at-fault driver is considered the defendant and is responsible for compensating the not-at-fault driver.
In a product liability case like medical malpractice, the product manufacturer acts as a defendant and is responsible for compensating the victim of the malpractice for its losses.
Slip and fall cases are also covered under personal injury cases. If the person is injured due to reasons like slipping on a wet surface, odd furniture installation, poor maintenance of lifts, elevators etc., such a victim can file a personal injury case against the desired party.
Remember that getting injured at the workplace isn’t covered under personal injury cases. They form part of worker’s compensation lawsuits. Since most states follow a no-fault workers’ compensation, it cannot be classified as a personal injury case. The element of negligence or fault is important to be called a personal injury case.
When do you need a personal injury lawyer?
You will need a personal injury lawyer if the damages from the accident are heavy on your pocket. You have the right to recover the damages from the responsible party.
In that case, you will have to file a personal injury case with the help of a personal injury lawyer. They file the case against the defendant and allow you to recover your damages.
For instance, in case of a car accident, you are compensated for medical expenses, damage to the vehicle, and other non-monetary damages.
How much does a personal injury lawyer cost in Fayetteville?
Most people think hiring a lawyer would cost more than the amount of money they will help recover. It is believed that they charge on an hourly basis. This is a myth.
Hiring a personal injury lawyer isn’t expensive, and they don’t necessarily charge on an hourly basis (well, we definitely do not). They do not charge an upfront fee before working on your case.
In fact, these days, the consultation is usually free. Thereafter, if the lawyer finds a case stronger and takes it up, they start to talk about the related costs.
The best part is you do not have to pay anything out of pocket. A personal injury lawyer in Fayetteville charges on a contingency fee basis. As per the contingency fee agreement, the client has to pay no upfront fees and only pay when a certain level of compensation is recovered.
If no compensation is recovered, the attorney charges nothing at all.
How much percentage of compensation is considered as a contingency fee?
The personal injury lawyer tries to recover maximum compensation as well. This is fruitful both for the client as well as the lawyer.
The more the compensation is received, the better a lawyer can earn. A lawyer charges 33% of the total compensation as the fee.
This is a fair deal as benefits recovered with the help of an attorney are 3.5 times higher than when recovered without their help.
The insurance company and defendant’s lawyers have the upper hand if a victim doesn’t hire a lawyer. They have their way with words and try to settle the case with minimum possible payouts.
Research also says that the victim (client) is more satisfied with the result after hiring a personal injury lawyer than when they don’t. Not hiring a lawyer means going through the turmoil of talking to the insurance company and defense lawyers and collecting the evidence without help.
Dealing with the legal system isn’t easy for anyone who isn’t experienced. Doing so when you are in pain and suffering is worse.
Thus, hiring a personal injury lawyer does more than good. It makes the process easier and tolerable to a huge extent. Furthermore, you can rest assured that the lawyer will work towards extracting the maximum possible compensation.
Are there any hidden costs in hiring a personal injury lawyer?
Apart from the contingency fee of the lawyer, there are other costs incurred in filing a lawsuit. As an estimate, filing a lawsuit comes with overhead costs of :
- Court filing fees
- Expert witness fees
- Stationary costs
- Cost of depositions
- Other travel expenses to and from courts, for investigation purposes etc.
- Expenses incurred in collecting evidence like the police report, video records etc.
Initially, all of these costs are borne by the law firm representing you. This means the law firm does not charge for such fees over and above the contingency fee. For instance, if the compensation recovered amounts to $500,000 and the litigation costs if $50,000, the lawyer fees would be 1/3rd i.e., 33% of $450,000.
The cost of litigation can vary from case to case. The more complicated the case, the more will be the fees. If the case goes to trial, the charges can increase.
Thus, there is no estimate or fixed costs associated with hiring a lawyer.
Once the lawyer reads and understands the case, they may be able to provide the estimate depending on how long it will take to get the compensation. Factors like multiple defendants, multiple victims, and other interest parties involved make the case complicated.
For instance, in product liability cases, cases usually turn into multidistrict litigation or class action limitations. This is when many there are more than 100s of victims of the same defendant.
In such cases, the cases go on for years, but after the agreement, the compensation provided is the lump sum.
Contact a personal injury lawyer in Fayetteville
For further queries, you can contact personal injury attorneys, Fayetteville, NC, to know better about personal injury cases.