How much does it cost to hire a South Carolina personal injury attorney?

It depends, but you don’t need to bring your own money to do it. South Carolina personal injury lawyers get paid with a “contingency fee.” It’s a cut from the financial settlement the lawyer earns for you. Additionally, you reimburse the lawyer from the settlement for money he spends to help your case.

The beauty of a contingency fee is that it should drive your lawyer to get the best settlement possible. The more money you get, the more he earns. Plus there’s less risk to you—you pay nothing from your pocket, which may be empty from losing work due to your injuries.

Here’s more specifics how this works.

Understanding South Carolina Personal Injury Lawyer Fees

Fee percentages vary among lawyers. Our fees are usually one-third of your settlement. If the case gets within 10 days of trial, the extra work may justify increasing the fee to 40%. At Holland and Usry, we pledge that our clients get more in their pockets than our fee. You’ve lived through it, so you deserve more than us.

We also won’t let you hire us unless we’re confident we can help get you a better South Carolina accident injury settlement. See if your case qualifies for us to help you, and get your questions answered in a free*, no pressure strategy session with a Spartanburg, SC personal injury attorney. Call toll free at (864) 582-0416 or fill out a Get Help Now form.

Here’s a real question that also needs to be answered: How much do clients pay their attorneys for personal injury cases if they lose? Answer: you owe no attorney fees to us if we lose. It’s a business risk we agreed to take. Don’t let a different attorney tell you there’s a fee for losing. You deserve a lawyer who’s invested “all-in” for your case’s success!

Typical Personal Injury Case Costs

“Costs” are money we spend to help your case. At Holland and Usry, we work to minimize these costs—without hurting your case—to help get you get the most money possible.

Typical costs include:

• Fees for evidence. In traffic crash cases, we get the officer’s accident report. Sometimes we get public documents for other evidence through Freedom of Information Act requests, like more extensive crash reports in serious DUI accident cases or coroner’s files in wrongful death cases. In cases where we file a lawsuit, we may subpoena information. All these requests usually generate a research and copying fee.
• Fees charged by medical providers for records and bills. The extent of your injuries is often molded by an expert in them—your doctor. We can’t present your case without medical records. No insurance company will pay without clinical proof the accident caused your injuries.
• Fees charged by your doctor to meet with him. Sometimes we meet with your doctor to fully understand the professional view of your injuries. A brief questionnaire developed from this meeting can provide powerful evidence of the severity of your injuries, permanent damage, and your need for future care.
• Filing fees. When we file a lawsuit, the clerk of court charges a fee to do it. If your case requires motions to be argued before a judge, we also pay a filing fee for that.
• Depositions. Depositions are out-of-court sworn testimony where each side finds out what the other side’s trial testimony will likely be. Done right, it can require hours of preparation. The most costly and often most important depositions are doctor depositions. They testify at trial through a deposition, which we often record on video for a more powerful effect on the jury.
• Experts. Some cases require a professional with special knowledge or training to prove your case. For example, medical malpractice cases can’t be filed without a doctor’s sworn statement your doctor did something wrong to hurt you. Because experts can make costs skyrocket, we use them cautiously.
• Mediation. Courts require that we try to use the mediation process to resolve a civil claim before it goes to trial. The parties hire an experienced mediator (usually a lawyer or former judge) with no interest in the outcome to try to help them settle it. We pay the mediation fee up front, but we get reimbursed from your final settlement or verdict.

Bonus For You: Your Injury Lawyer Works for Free Until Your Case Is Over

If you’re hurt in an accident, it costs you nothing up front to hire a trained professional to solve your problem. That’s a much better deal than your doctor offers. And handling a serious injury case on your own is like operating on yourself. You wouldn’t do that, would you?

So you literally have nothing to lose—and potentially more than you think to gain—by sitting down with a skilled professional whose job is helping folks like you. Here’s more good news for you: when you come to our office, you’ll be welcomed into a free*, easy strategy session with no pressure or obligation to hire us.

Wondering what it’s like to be a client? See these reviews we didn’t pay for on a website we don’t own, as well as Google Plus. Give yourself a shot by contacting us toll-free at  (864) 582-0416 or fill out a Get Help Now form so we can start answering your questions and talk about what we can do to help.