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Attorney Fees and Costs Explained
Attorney fees are an important consideration when looking for legal help. Let’s talk about attorney fees right now.
These are important questions. Answer them by looking at the facts of your L&I claim. Look also at the medical and vocational opinions in your claim file. Think about how much money is at stake? Can you can afford to lose it? How much experience do you have with L&I claims? Do you understand the law? Do you have the evidence you need to prove your case and make it a winner? Is your case good enough that a lawyer will take it?
Not sure? Call us for a free consultation and strategy session. 206-343-1988.
Contingent legal fees mean that you do not have to pay attorney fees up front. It also means that if you don’t win your case, you don’t pay any attorney fees at all. If you win your case then you pay a percentage of the recovery.
L&I attorney fees at our law firm and most workers compensation firms are based on a contingent fee agreement. Lawyers offer to handle an L&I claim on a contingent basis when they believe in the case and the client. At the Sharpe Law Firm, we only take cases for clients we believe in. We offer contingent legal fees.
If and when you get paid, attorney fees are a percentage of the money the attorney recovers for you. If you are offered a contingent fee agreement it will be in writing, read it. No matter how much you trust your new lawyer be sure to carefully read any fee agreement put in front of you. Ask questions. Know what the deal is. It’s the smart thing to do.
A contingent fee means you only pay a legal fee if you win. And then only out of the money your lawyer recovers for you.
Dentists don’t do that. Doctors don’t do that. You’ll never find a doctor who gets paid only if the surgery is successful. Why would an attorney agree get paid only if he wins?
There are legal limits on attorney fees in L&I cases. Attorney fees either before L&I or at the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals are limited in three ways; by statute, by reasonableness, and by best practices.
Case costs are different than attorney fees. Case costs are expenses incurred in the handling of your case. For example, an injury case needs medical records. We order your medical records, we review the records, and we use these records as part of your case; we do not charge for that. The doctor however charges for a copy of the records, that charge is a case cost. The client is responsible to eventually pay this case cost.
Some lawyers want clients to pay costs in advance, some want costs paid as the case proceeds, and some will advance costs until the end of the case when money is awarded. At the Sharpe Law Firm, we are successful recovering money for the client in almost every case. If we advance costs for our clients, we are repaid out of the money we make L&I pay you.
If you hire a lawyer, the fee agreement presented to you will provide the specifics about attorney fees and case costs. Read it with care. Ask questions. Know your rights.
Information for free. This information on this website is provided as a free service, so you can make informed choices about your L&I claim. If you contact us, we will do our best to answer your initial phone or e-mail questions about your injury claims, at no charge to you.
Referrals. Christopher Sharpe is the “of counsel” attorney at the Walthew Law Firm. He often refers clients needing active L&I legal assistance to the partners and associates at the Walthew Law Firm.
Call for information or a free strategy session – 206-343-1988
Christopher Sharpe is the go to attorney for injured persons. His law firm is helpful, honest, and knowledgeable about workers' compensation and personal injury law in the State of Washington. Chris has been helping injured Washington State workers for over 30 years. He has built his practice on thoroughly educating, honestly helping, and successfully representing workers throughout Washington State. Public schools did not teach you how to survive the effects of a serious job injury and effectively handle an L&I claim. Our website does. It provides you an opportunity to get information about the medical, vocational, financial, and legal help you need to make your L&I claim work for you. Read the information on this website and then contact us with your questions. Taking the time to learn about injury law and your rights could be the smartest thing you've ever done. We are here to help you make good choices.
Sharpe Law Firm
2775 Harbor Avenue SW, Suite D
Seattle, WA 98126-2138
Phone:
(206) 343-1988
Fax:
(206) 652-4655
