What Does Contingency Basis Mean in Minnesota?
August 15, 2014 | Adriel B. VillarrealIf you have suffered a personal injury or loss and would like to bring a case against someone but don’t have the funds to pay a lawyer to begin a lawsuit, it may be beneficial for you to find a lawyer who works on a contingency basis.
This means that they will only collect a fee if they win the case, and if they don’t win the case for you, you will owe them nothing.
This can be incredibly helpful for those who may not have the funds to secure legal representation but still want to pursue their civil right to bring a lawsuit against someone.
Contingency Based Lawyers
Generally, if you hire a lawyer with the understanding that they are working for a contingent fee, it means that they will require a payment only if they win the case through settlement or jury trial. This fee will generally be their normal hourly billing.
Contingency Fees are Often a Win-Win
The main advantage of contingency fee arrangements is that it provides access to the courts for those who cannot afford to pay attorney’s fees and the high costs of civil litigation. They also provide motivation for an attorney to work more diligently on a case. In cases where a person pays the attorney their hourly fee, it makes no difference to them whether or not they win the case because they will get paid either way. With a contingency fee arrangement, they are only getting paid if they win.
Contingency fees are usually provided for personal injury cases and are not typically used for any other type of litigation.
Jurisdictions in Minnesota also require contingency rates to be reasonable, so rates will often be about 33-45{a0c01d20c42349884e67ff80c137866b0a9fe47aaae8f8a86a605a369ae487c3} of all eventual recovery.
If you need more information about hiring a lawyer on a contingency basis like whether your case qualifies for such an arrangement or the steps needed to hire a contingency lawyer, please give BGS a call today and we’ll gladly help out with any questions you have.