“No win no fee” simply means if you don’t win, you don’t pay. We get paid at the end of the claim when you do. We carry all expenses involved in the claim until final settlement. You are not required to pay anything up front.
The amount of our costs is calculated according to a Costs Agreement that we are required by law to enter into with all of our clients. The amount of costs can vary from case to case, depending on the nature of the claim, your type of injury and how the insurance company conducts its defence of the claim.
Under our Costs Agreement we pay for all expenses associated with running of the claim, including medical report fees, court filing fees and barristers’ fees, if necessary.
Sometimes the expenses incurred to run a case can be significant, particularly in claims involving a catastrophic injury. Many law firms require their clients to take out “litigation loans” to pay for expenses. These loans attract an application fee, much the same as applying for a loan at the bank, and high rates of interest. We do not use litigation loans in any of our cases at GC Law.
Personal injury lawyers are not allowed to charge a percentage of what their client recovers, like lawyers do in America. However, there seems to be a trend with the large firms that they will charge their clients 50% or half the compensation the client recovers. In our firm the amount of our costs is generally closer to 30%.
Working exclusively on a “no win no fee” basis requires careful screening of new cases, experience and a sound knowledge of personal injury law. If you would like advice on where you stand, feel free to call us or make an online enquiry. We’re here to help you.
