How Contingency Fees Work in Personal Injury Cases

A contingency fee means the attorney fee is payable out of the recovery. If there is no recovery, no attorney fee is charged. That is the part everyone understands. The parts that decide what a client actually receives are the ones further down the agreement.

Costs Are Not the Same as Fees

The client remains responsible for case costs, and those are separate from the attorney fee. Costs include filing fees, service of process, deposition transcripts, medical record charges, retained witness fees, investigators, exhibits and trial expenses. A firm may advance them during the case, but advancing is not absorbing. The fee agreement must state whether costs are deducted before or after the fee percentage is calculated, and whether the client owes them if the case does not recover. Those two provisions change the client s net more than the headline percentage does.

Gross or Net Matters

A percentage applied to the gross recovery produces a different result from the same percentage applied after costs are deducted. Both structures are used. The agreement must say which one applies, and a client comparing firms should compare that term rather than the percentage alone.

Sliding Scales

Many agreements set a lower percentage where the matter resolves before suit is filed and a higher one after filing, or after a trial date is set. The staged structure reflects the work each stage requires. The stages and the rate at each should be stated explicitly.

State Requirements Differ

Contingency fee regulation is not uniform. New Jersey and New York each impose specific requirements on personal injury contingency arrangements, including written disclosure of the client s responsibility for costs and, in some categories of case, limits on the permissible percentage. The applicable rules depend on where the matter is brought, and the agreement should reflect them.

What the Agreement Must Do

It must be in writing. It must state the percentage and the stages at which it changes. It must state whether the percentage applies to gross or net. It must state how costs are handled, including whether the client owes them on an unsuccessful claim. It must explain how liens and reimbursement claims are resolved before disbursement. And it should include a written settlement statement at the end showing every deduction.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I owe anything if we do not recover?

No attorney fee is charged where there is no recovery. Case costs are a separate matter, and the client remains responsible for them — the agreement must state whether the client owes costs on an unsuccessful claim.

Is the percentage taken before or after costs?

It depends on the agreement, and both structures are used. The same percentage produces a different net depending on which applies, so it is the term to check before signing.

Do the rules differ by state?

Yes. New Jersey and New York each impose specific requirements on personal injury contingency arrangements, including written disclosure of the client s cost responsibility and, in some categories, limits on the permissible percentage.

About Mr. Sris

Mr. Sris is the founding attorney of Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C., a firm practicing since 1997. He is a former prosecutor and is admitted in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey and New York. Of Counsel attorneys contract directly with the firm and handle matters alongside him.

Speak With Mr. Sris

Read the agreement for two things: how the percentage is applied, and who bears costs. Request a consultation. Reach our location at (888) 437-7747. Consultations are by appointment.

Last reviewed: September 3, 2026.

Attorney Advertising. Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C., principal office: 4008 Williamsburg Court, Fairfax, VA 22032. By appointment. Call (888) 437-7747 to schedule.

The information on this page is general and is not legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is created by reading it or by contacting the firm. Case results depend on a variety of factors unique to each case. Results may vary.

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