How the contingency fee works
New Jersey is one of the few states that caps what an injury lawyer can charge, by court rule. It is Rule 1:21-7, and it sets a sliding scale:
There is also a separate protection: if the injured person was a minor or was mentally incapacitated when the fee agreement was made, the fee on a settlement reached before trial cannot exceed 25%.
A lawyer cannot charge you more than this. If someone quotes you 40%, something is wrong.
The fee is calculated on the net, not the gross
This is the detail that nobody explains and that changes the math.
The percentage is applied after case costs are deducted, not before. So if we recover $60,000 and the case cost $3,000 to bring, the fee is calculated on $57,000, not on $60,000.
That is required by the rule. Ask any lawyer you are considering whether they calculate the fee on the net or the gross. Their answer tells you a lot.
Costs are a different thing from fees
“Costs” are what it takes to actually build the case: filing fees, medical records, expert reports, deposition transcripts, court reporters, accident reconstruction if we need it.
We advance these. You do not write checks along the way. They come out of the recovery at the end, before the fee percentage is applied.
If we recover nothing, you owe us no fee. Ask us directly about costs in the event of no recovery, and we will put the answer in writing in the fee agreement, in plain language, before you sign anything.
The part nobody warns you about: liens
This is the single biggest reason people are shocked by their settlement check, and I would rather you hear it from me now than from a disbursement sheet later.
If your health insurer, your PIP carrier, Medicare, or Medicaid paid your medical bills, they generally have a right to be paid back out of your settlement. That is a lien. It comes off the top.
So a $50,000 settlement is not $50,000 in your pocket. It is $50,000, minus the liens, minus the case costs, and then the fee percentage on what is left.
Negotiating those liens down is real work, and it is where a good lawyer quietly makes you thousands of dollars that never show up as a headline number. Nobody advertises this. It matters more than the headline number does.
What we will never do
- We will not take your case, sit on it, and hand you a quick settlement to clear the file.
- We will not tell you what your case is worth on the first phone call. Anyone who does is guessing, and it is a sales tactic.
- We will not surprise you. Every number that ends up on your disbursement sheet gets explained to you before you sign.
Common questions
How much of a $50,000 settlement will I actually get?
It depends on your liens and your case costs, and any lawyer who gives you a number without seeing those is making it up. Here is the order it comes out in: case costs first, then the attorney fee on the net, then the medical liens. What is left is yours. We will walk you through your specific numbers before you sign anything, not after.
What’s the most a lawyer can take from a settlement in New Jersey?
The cap is set by court rule: 33⅓% of the first $750,000 recovered, and less on higher amounts, calculated after case costs are deducted. See the table above.
What if we lose?
You owe no fee. We will put the treatment of costs in writing before you sign.
Do I pay anything to have you look at my case?
No. The consultation is free and there is no obligation.