Representation on a Contingency
Fee Basis
Hiring An Experienced and Trusted Spokane Attorney is Not About the Money
Sweetser Law Office operates on a contingency fee basis. A contingency fee means injured people we represent pay no fee unless we win. No recovery means no fee. A contingency fee means you do not pay upfront legal fees and we do not charge by the hour. You will never get a bill for the time and energy spent on your case. You don’t have to worry about losing your case and then being stuck with expensive attorney fees.
If no money is obtained, then our clients do not owe legal fees. If we are successful in your case, either by obtaining a settlement or verdict, then an applicable percentage of the total recovery is paid to Sweetser Law Office. In this way, a contingency fee is dependent upon winning your case. Only if your case is successful does a percentage of the money received at settlement or after a verdict go to our office while the majority will go to you.
There are several benefits of contingency fees, including:
- No up-front attorney fees
- Substantially less financial risk for the client
- Properly aligning the interests of both the client and attorney
- Providing low-income individuals access to justice
How Are Contingency Fees Calculated?
Sweetser Law Office, similar to other Spokane injury attorneys, operates on a contingency fee basis of 1/3 of the total recovery in most cases. If the case goes all the way to trial the fee may increase to 38%. In complex cases, such as products liability cases, premises liability, or other complicated and expensive cases, the contingency fee may be 38% and increase to 40% if the case goes all the way to a jury verdict. Our contingency fee is higher for complex cases because they are more expensive to prepare and therefore carry more risk. In a product defect case, for example, expenses may amount to more than $100,000. Our office funds all of the expenses in your case, so we risk losing those expenses. Thus, the fee, which is contingent upon winning, must reflect that risk.
A common question clients have is whether our contingency fee is calculated on the total amount recovered, or calculated on the total amount after the expenses have been deducted from the total. The answer is that the contingency fee is calculated on the total amount recovered. Because a lawyer’s time and expertise are his trade, compensation must be tied to the total result and not reduced by the amount of money spent to prosecute the case.
Litigation Costs Advanced to Obtain the Most Favorable Result Possible
Trials are expensive. Sweetser Law Office advances the financial resources to go before the jury when necessary so that the best possible outcome is achieved. We are judicious in deciding what costs to spend because our main objective is to ensure our clients maximize their recovery. However, in the case of trial you want to have a Spokane injury attorney with the financial capacity to fund your case.
In the event of your case going all the way to trial, Sweetser Law Office will have thoroughly prepared your case. We do not enter the arena armed with a bee-bee gun when the insurance industry has a bazooka. We will go to the mat for you. This means we hire the experts, take the depositions, and fully prepare every aspect to compelling prove your case to a jury. Our track record of success speaks for itself. We have a history of obtaining superior results for our clients because we go the extra step, always prepared to take the case to trial when a settlement cannot be reached.
Contact us now for more information on the benefits of contingency fees!