The biggest practical issue most people face when deciding whether to make a claim is how they are going to pay for all the legal costs involved. Pursuing a claim through the courts may involve instructing lawyers, and legal fees can run into many thousands of pounds. The usual rule in personal injury cases is that the losing side has to pay the winning side’s costs, and so you will also have to think about the risk of paying the Defendant’s costs should your claim fail.
However, the funding of legal costs has become a more practical proposition in the light of conditional fee agreements, which are also known as ‘no win, no fee’ agreements. How these work is that if a solicitor believes that you have a reasonable claim and are more likely than not to recover damages from the Defendant, he will enter into an agreement with you where he will act on your behalf but in general will agree not to recover any of his fees from you. If your claim fails, he will not recover any of his own legal fees, and he may have arranged insurance to pay for the Defendant’s legal costs, although you may be asked to pay for the cost of the insurance premium.
On the other hand, if your claim succeeds, your solicitor will recover his fees from the Defendant, not from you. He will not only recover his normal fees but because he took your case on a no win no fee basis, he is entitled to uplift his own fees by up to 100% and make the Defendant pay the uplift as well. In the event that your claim is successful, both you and your solicitor are likely to benefit. You will receive all of your compensation without having to pay any legal costs out of it, and your solicitor will receive up to double his normal fees for taking the risk of accepting your case on a no win no fee basis
It is also of course possible to instruct a solicitor without relying on a no win no fee agreement. You will then pay for your solicitor’s costs if you lose your case, but if you win you should be able to recover your own costs from the Defendant. However, many people do not want to take the risk of having to pay lawyers for bringing a claim, and that is where no win no fee agreements can be useful, as they enable people to bring claims who would otherwise be put off by the potential costs of doing so.
If you wish to discuss a possible claim, please consult our Directory of Solicitors to find a solicitor in your area who may be able to help you..