Fees
You will NEVER write a check to us. Ethical requirements for attorneys
mandate us to inform you that we are entitled to recover our expenses
at the conclusion of your case, even in the unlikely event that we are
unsuccessful. However, we have never and will never collect our expenses
if we do not achieve a verdict or settlement for you. We only receive
a fee and recover our expenses if we obtain a recovery for you.
The attorney’s
fee for most personal injury cases is 1/3 of the recovery, minus disbursements.
Disbursements include checks that we write to file your lawsuit, court
fees that we are required to pay as your case progresses, doctors’
fees to send us copies of your medical records, private investigator
costs, and other payments that we make as your case progresses. However,
we DO NOT pad our disbursements by charging you for phone calls, postage
or photocopying, which some other lawyers will add on as disbursements.
The exception to
the fee schedule is for medical malpractice cases, where there is a
sliding fee schedule that is set by law and is less than 1/3. Also,
certain Federal cases have a fee set at less than 1/3. We will explain
this to you if you have a malpractice or Federal case.