How Contingency Fees Work

A contingency fee means the attorney is paid from what the case recovers rather than from the client’s pocket. If there is no recovery, there is no fee. That structure is what makes it possible to bring a claim against an insurance company without money to spend on the fight.

The Basic Arrangement

The fee is a percentage of the recovery, set in a written agreement signed before any work begins. Florida requires that agreement in writing and requires the client to receive and sign a Statement of Client’s Rights alongside it.

Nothing is billed hourly. There is no retainer, and no invoice arrives while the case is pending. The firm carries the financial risk of the claim, which also means the firm has a direct stake in what the case produces.

What the Florida Bar Permits

Rule 4-1.5 of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar caps contingency fees in injury cases on a sliding scale. The percentages shift based on how far the case progresses and how much it recovers.

• Before the defendant files an answer, up to 33 and one-third percent of any recovery to $1 million.
• After an answer is filed or the time to answer expires, up to 40 percent of any recovery to $1 million.
• Above $1 million, lower percentages apply to those portions.
• Where liability is admitted and only the amount is disputed, the cap drops back down.

Charging more than these figures without prior court approval is presumed excessive. A client is free to negotiate a lower percentage, and medical malpractice cases follow a separate structure tied to the Florida Constitution.

Fees and Costs Are Different Things

The fee compensates the attorney. Costs are what it takes to build the case, and the two come out of a recovery separately.

Costs typically include filing fees, medical record retrieval, deposition transcripts, accident reconstruction, and testimony from treating physicians. A straightforward claim may incur modest costs. Litigation involving reconstruction and multiple depositions runs considerably higher, particularly in a truck accident case where carrier records and federal compliance analysis are involved.

Most firms advance these expenses and recover them from the settlement. Whether a client owes costs if the case produces nothing depends entirely on the written agreement, which is the single most important question to ask before signing one.

What Comes Out Before You Get Paid

A settlement figure is not the amount that reaches the client. Several obligations are satisfied from the recovery first.

• The attorney’s fee under the agreed percentage.
• Case costs advanced during the representation.
• Medical liens and unpaid provider balances, including treatment furnished under a letter of protection.
• Reimbursement claims from health insurance or Medicare where applicable.
• Repayment obligations tied to no-fault benefits already paid.

Negotiating those balances downward is part of the work. Reducing a hospital lien by twenty percent can affect the client’s net recovery as much as arguing over the last increment of the damages figure itself. Florida law now also governs how letters of protection are disclosed and how medical expense evidence is presented, which affects both what a jury sees and what gets paid at the end.

Why the Structure Exists

Insurance carriers employ salaried adjusters and defense counsel who are paid regardless of outcome. An injured person with medical bills and lost income has no comparable resources. The contingency arrangement closes that gap by shifting the risk to the firm.

It also aligns incentives. A firm paid from the result has reason to develop the claim fully rather than accept an early offer, and reason to decline cases it cannot win. That screening function is why a consultation is worth having even when the answer turns out to be that a claim is not viable.

Questions Worth Asking Before You Sign

Fee agreements vary between firms, and the differences are not always obvious.

• What percentage applies, and at what stage does it change?
• Is the fee calculated before or after case costs are deducted?
• Who is responsible for costs if the case does not recover?
• Who will actually handle the file day to day?
• Will the firm negotiate medical liens as part of the representation?

The answers matter more in some situations than others. Deciding when to involve an attorney is a separate question from choosing one, and both deserve attention before Florida’s filing deadline narrows the options.

Talk to a Florida Personal Injury Attorney

Cost should not determine whether an injured person gets representation. Tuttle Larsen Injury Attorneys handles injury claims across the Treasure Coast and Space Coast on a contingency fee basis, with more than 55 years of combined experience behind that work. A personal injury lawyer from our office will explain the fee agreement in full before you sign anything, including how costs and liens are handled. We represent people injured in collisions and premises cases throughout the region. If you were hurt because of someone else’s negligence, contact our office to discuss your options. Consultations are free.

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