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May 4, 2022
Car accidents are an unfortunate part of life here in Southern California. And in the first half of 2021, despite traffic levels being lower than normal with the COVID-19 pandemic, almost every traffic crash category saw an increase in Los Angeles, according to data provided by the LAPD.
What if I Can’t Afford a Car Accident Lawyer and am Injured in an Accident?
For example:
- DUI crashes increased 20% from 2020
- Severe DUI crashes where a serious injury occurred increased 73% from 2020
- Fatal DUI crashes increased 9% from 2020
- Fatal hit-and-run crashes increased 25% from 2020
- Severe hit-and-run crashes increased 20% from 2020
- Crashes where a driver seriously injured a pedestrian increased 45% from 2020
- Crashes where a driver seriously injured a bicyclist increased 34% from 2020
- Crashes where a driver killed a bicyclist increased 40% from 2020
Car accidents often lead to injuries that can range in severity. Such injuries – including whiplash, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, broken or fractured bones, and more – can be devastating to one’s quality of life. In fact, many car accident injuries can require long-term care which can cause considerable financial hardship.
When you’re injured in a California car accident, filing a civil claim (lawsuit) can often be the best means of recovering critical financial compensation which ensures you make a complete recovery:
- Physically
- Emotionally
- Financially
But what if you can’t afford to hire an attorney out-of-pocket? Moreover, how do you know whether or not you need to hire a car accident lawyer?
In the sections below, we will review how to find an experienced, qualified, and proven car accident lawyer without ever having to pay a penny in upfront fees. Additionally, we’ll look at what types of financial damages may be recovered in a car accident claim, review what sorts of injuries often result after such traffic crash, and discuss how to file a motor vehicle collision lawsuit with Dordulian Law Group.
How Can I Afford a Car Accident Injury Attorney?
When you’re unexpectedly injured in a car accident, your world can be turned upside down. Medical bills, pain and suffering, lost wages, lost earning capacity, and more can occur after even a minor fender bender. When serious or catastrophic injuries are sustained after a car accident, a settlement may be the only thing preventing financial ruin due to ongoing and costly medical care costs.
As most people are unable to afford to pay a lawyer out-of-pocket, many personal injury attorneys will work on what’s known as a contingency fee basis. Rather than charging an hourly rate (which can be quite costly) or being “on the clock,” car accident lawyers such as those here at Dordulian Law Group (DLG) work on a contingency fee basis that is agreed to with clients when cases are accepted.
In short, a contingency fee agreement means that a car accident lawyer will accept your case without any upfront costs or out-of-pocket expenses. Rather than taking money upfront or charging you an hourly rate, a DLG contingency fee car accident lawyer will only accept payment after successfully recovering a maximum financial damages award for your injury claim.
When a car accident lawyer accepts your case on a contingency basis, it means that he or she is willing to accept the risk of potentially never receiving payment for services. However, it also means that your attorney is confident in the possibility of reaching a successful outcome in your claim – via either a cash settlement or verdict.
In other words, if you’ve been injured in a car accident, you can afford to hire an experienced and proven personal injury lawyer (regardless of your financial situation) by entering into a contingency fee agreement. By doing so, you will never pay anything until your financial settlement or verdict has been obtained. If you don’t receive a financial damages award, you never have to worry about paying any fees for a car accident attorney’s services.
What are Typical Attorney Contingency Fees?
In short, typical car accident (or personal injury) attorney contingency fees range from between 33% and 45% of a final financial damages award. In other words, if you received a $100,000,000 settlement for your car accident claim, you would ultimately receive a check for between $670,000 and $550,000.
However, lawyer contingency fees often vary from firm-to-firm (and can fluctuate depending on the specific details related to your case). As the prospective client, you always have the right to negotiate a specific percentage or alternative agreement. But in most personal injury cases, a lawyer will receive 33% (one third) of a final settlement or verdict.
In some cases, the contingency fee percentage paid to the attorney is determined by the merits of the claim and will vary based on the amount of time it takes for the case to reach a conclusion. This is referred to as a “sliding scale” option. In such sliding scale agreements, where a contingency fee can increase according to what’s known as “tiers,” the following structure often applies:
- In cases are able to be quickly concluded – where a settlement is reached prior to a formal complaint being filed with the applicable court – the attorney will likely be entitled to a “first tier” percentage. A typical first tier percentage is 33%. However, some cases may warrant a lower figure. In cases where a formal complaint must be filed in court, the fee percentage to which the attorney is entitled may increase.
- In cases that do not reach a resolution and proceed to a trial, the attorney’s fees may increase once again. Essentially, if your case requires your attorney to devote significant hours (and/or proceeds to a lengthy trial), you can likely expect the fee percentage to increase slightly from the first tier. Typically, that increase is somewhere between the initial 33% (one third) agreement and the potential high-end of 40%.
While an attorney’s contingency fees may seem high, it’s important to keep in mind that your lawyer is in fact taking on all the risk when accepting a case via such an agreement. Again, when you hire a car accident lawyer on a contingency fee basis, you’re only ever responsible for paying after your case has reached a successful conclusion via a maximum financial damages award.
Should I Hire a Car Accident Lawyer on a Contingency Fee Basis?
Whether you hire legal representation on a contingency fee or hourly basis will depend on a number of personal circumstances. If you aren’t able to pay anything upfront, a contingency fee agreement may be your best option. But a contingency fee agreement may be prudent even if you are able to pay an hourly fee – as cases that require significant time, energy, and resources may ultimately cost more in the end.
Regardless of your financial situation, the most important thing you can do after a car accident injury is hire an experienced and proven lawyer. Doing so can help ensure that you recover the maximum possible financial compensation for your claim.
In fact, research indicates that personal injury victims actually receive significantly more money for their claim when represented by a qualified lawyer, as opposed to attempting to handle the case on their own.
For example, the Insurance Research Council (IRC) recently conducted a study which confirmed the following personal injury claim statistics:
- Settlements for injured claimants were 40% higher when they had secured private legal representation.
- The average insurance payout was 3.5 times higher for injured victims who hired private attorneys (when compared to those representing themselves).
- 85% of all money paid by insurance companies for bodily injuries is received by victims who have secured representation from a private personal injury attorney.
At DLG our Car Accident Division attorneys only accept cases we believe can be won. When we accept your case on a contingency fee basis, you can be confident that we will fight to recover a maximum damages award.
What are Some Common Types of Car Accident Injuries?
Car accidents can lead to a range of injuries – varying in both type and severity. Some of the more common types of car accident injuries we encounter at DLG include:
- Whiplash
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI)
- Spinal cord injury
- Broken or fractured bones
- Road rash
- Scarring or disfigurement
- Concussion (MTBI)
- Torn ligaments
- Catastrophic injury
- Paralysis
- Death
The extent of one’s car accident injuries may impact the total amount of financial compensation recovered. For example, more severe injuries requiring substantial medical care and recovery time may warrant significant cash settlement awards. To learn more about how much your Los Angeles, California, car accident injury claim may be worth, contact a lawyer from DLG’s Personal Injury Division today at 818-322-4056.
What Types of Damages May be Recovered in a Car Accident Injury Claim?
Car accident claims can vary on a case-by-case basis. Some car accidents cause serious or catastrophic injuries that require significant legal resources (potentially including a jury trial). Others (the vast majority, in fact) can be settled quickly and without ever requiring a trial.
The most common examples of car accident injury damages in civil lawsuits are broken down below according to type.
Common California Car Accident Injury Economic Damages:
- Medical expenses (past and future)
- Emergency department treatment
- Physical Therapy
- Rehabilitation
- Lost Wages
- Lost Earning Capacity
Common California Car Accident Injury Non-Economic Damages:
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional trauma
- Reduced quality of life
- Scarring or other serious injury
- Compensation for loss of a limb or disfigurement
Hiring a DLG car accident injury lawyer can help ensure your civil claim is maximized and that you recover all applicable damages after an incident due to negligence. Our Car Accident Division is led by Sam Dordulian, a former Deputy District Attorney for Los Angeles County with more than 25 years of experience helping injured victims secure the maximum financial compensation they deserve.
To learn more about how important it can be to have an experienced DLG California car accident injury lawyer handling your case, please visit our recent blog on how pain and suffering damages are calculated in personal injury civil claims.
Hire the Best Los Angeles, California, Car Accident Lawyers Today
Your car accident lawsuit deserves to be handled by only an experienced and proven personal injury lawyer who will ensure your claim is maximized and you are able to make a complete recovery. Insurance companies are in the business of making money and keeping any payouts for car accident injury claims as low as possible. The moment after you get into a car accident, insurance companies dispatch their teams of lawyers and adjusters to begin thoroughly evaluating your injury claim.
Accordingly, hiring a personal injury lawyer after a car accident is a means of leveling the playing field for victims. Just as the insurance companies have a team of professionals working to protect their multi-billion dollar interests, you should have a team of professionals fighting to ensure your losses are covered and you receive the medical care and attention you deserve. That’s where the team of proven and dedicated car accident lawyers at DLG can help.
We have secured the results you need for peace of mind throughout every step of the car accident injury claims process. We won’t settle for anything less than a maximum financial damages payout for your car accident injury lawsuit. Proving liability in a California car accident injury case requires skill and experience in order to secure the maximum financial compensation you truly deserve. Fighting to recover intangible and hard to quantify damages such as pain and suffering or emotional trauma can be challenging, but DLG’s team of car accident lawyers, led by Sam Dordulian, has the experience and skill you deserve.
In fact, Sam Dordulian has secured more than 100 jury trial victories throughout his esteemed career. Unlike many car accident lawyers at “settlement mill” firms, DLG has extensive jury trial experience. In other words, when you choose DLG to handle your car accident injury claim, you never have to worry about having to accept less than a maximum financial damages award. Even if your case requires a jury trial, you can be confident that our experienced team will fight aggressively to secure the justice and maximum financial compensation you deserve.
To learn more about the Top 10 Signs that you’ve hired the best lawyer for your case – whether a car accident, truck accident, Uber/Lyft accident, or bicycle accident injury – please visit our in-depth blog.
Free Los Angeles, California, Car Accident Lawyer Consultation
With DLG, your car accident injury consultation is always free, confidential, and without any obligation. We’ll review the facts of your case and provide you with all available legal options to ensure your rights are protected and the maximum financial damages award you deserve is pursued. We serve car accident injury clients throughout California as well as the United States.
Some of the local areas DLG serves include:
- Los Angeles
- Long Beach
- Glendale
- Torrance
- North Hollywood
- Burbank
- Pasadena
- San Diego
- Bakersfield
- Sacramento
- Fresno
- Riverside
- San Francisco
- Granada Hills
- Simi Valley
- San Fernando Valley
- Antelope Valley
Remember, if a DLG car accident attorney accepts your case, it means he or she is therefore willing to accept the risk that no compensation could potentially be received for legal services and expenses. By accepting that risk, your DLG attorney is confident that a successful resolution leading to a maximum financial damages award can be achieved.
Our experienced attorneys can help you pursue a financial award for your personal injury case. Contact us online or by phone for a free consultation today.
It’s important to file your car accident injury claim as soon as possible to preserve any evidence you may need to prove your case. We will utilize medical experts and other investigative professionals like our in-house Chief Investigator with 30 years of experience in the LAPD, Detective Moses Castillo. Our entire team will work tirelessly to strengthen your car accident injury claim and pursue a successful maximum financial settlement or verdict.
DLG’s Los Angeles, California, car accident injury lawyers have secured more than $100 million in settlements and verdicts for clients while maintaining a 98% success record. With our No Win/No Fee Guarantee, there is never any upfront cost for our expert car accident injury legal representation, and you never pay a dime until we successfully secure a maximum financial damages award for your claim.
Contact a DLG Los Angeles, California, car accident injury lawyer today at 818-322-4056 to arrange for a free consultation.
Don’t miss the deadline for filing your car accident injury lawsuit. California car accident injury victims who fail to file claims within the standard two-year statute of limitations typically waive their right to seek critical financial compensation for damages.
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