Paying for the case

In the mesothelioma court actions I handle, I recover my charges from the other side at the end of the case, and do not have to charge my client.

Under a Conditional Fee Agreement, your solicitors do not charge you for the work if you lose or have to give up your case on legal advice. Your solicitor gets paid by the other side on your behalf if you win. This is sometimes called "no win, no fee."

If you win or settle your case, you are responsible for your own solicitor's charges and expenses. If you were not responsible for them, your solicitor could not get paid by the other side. However if you win or settle your case, your solicitor gets most and frequently all of the charges and expenses back from the other side on top of your compensation, so you do not end up paying your solicitor.

Your solicitor will arrange insurance for you, which protects you from the cost of giving up or losing the case. I will not ask you to lay out money for this, and have been able to recover the cost of it from opponents at the end of the case on behalf of my clients.

If you lose or give up the case on legal advice, you will be ordered to pay the other side's legal charges, but you will not have to pay, because the insurance policy will cover you. The insurance policy also covers money spent on your behalf on court fees, medical or other expert opinions, and all other money paid to others during the case.

After signing a conditional fee agreement, your solicitor takes the risk of losing the case and not getting paid. If you lose or have to give up the case on legal advice, you are not liable to pay your solicitor for the work done under the conditional fee agreement.

If you already have legal expenses insurance, I will find out whether it covers you for the case. If I think you have a good case, and you want me to do the case, I will ask your legal expenses insurers to agree that I do the case for you.

This explanation of conditional fee agreements is in general terms. It is not part of the terms of my conditional fee agreements with my clients.