Costs charged by personal injury lawyers in Victoria are regulated under the Legal Profession Uniform Law (LPUL). This sets out a number of rules for lawyers about how they charge.
It is important to understand that in Victoria, personal injury lawyers are not allowed to bill as a percentage of your total compensation. Taking a percentage of a person’s compensation is called a “contingency fee”. While these types of agreements are popular in the United States, contingency fee agreements are not allowed in Victorian personal injury cost agreements.
This can create some uncertainty for clients who want to know what percentage of their compensation they will need to pay in legal costs.
Instead, personal injury lawyers generally charge based on the Supreme Court scale of costs. This is a schedule written by the Court which is a guide to how each piece of work is costed and valued. It is updated annually.
At Polaris, we help overcome costs uncertainty by capping the amount that our clients are charged, and agreeing to waive our costs if the compensation amount is small. Our clients always keep the majority of their compensation, so that you know that the costs will not outweigh your compensation.
You can ask us about capped fees when you first meet with us.
CONTACT POLARIS TODAY FOR FREE ADVICE
1300 383 825 or email [email protected]
