Many of our clients, for understandable reasons, want to know that their case can be dealt with on a no-win-no-fee basis.

Acting for a client on a no-win-no-fee basis means that if the case does not succeed, our fees are waived.  If the case succeeds the client’s legal costs are paid by the opponent but the law firm takes a deduction from the client’s compensation, capped at a maximum of 25% of past losses (inclusive of VAT) to reflect the fact they took the risk of acting on a no-win-no-fee basis.

The difference between this and a private-paying instruction is that when a client pays privately they have to pay the solicitor’s fees, usually via monthly invoices, and only if they win can they then try to recover the money they have paid from the opponent.  With a no-win-no-fee agreement there are no monthly invoices to pay – the law firm either waives their fees at the end i.e. if the case does not succeed, or claim their fees from the opponent if the case succeeds.

Therefore, the effect of a no-win-no-fee agreement is to shift the financial risk of the case onto the law firm and away from the client and the 25% deduction is the law firm’s reward for having taken that risk.

No-win-no-fee agreements are perhaps most commonly used in personal injury and medical negligence cases, but they can also be used in other types of cases such as breach of contract claims.  However, they are not as common outside of personal injury and medical negligence cases, for reasons that would be a little too complicated to explain in this article.

Normally a no-win-no-fee agreement will be the best option for a personal injury or medical negligence case because even though there is the 25% deduction at the end (though it is often much less than 25% because the 25% can only apply to past losses), the client does not have to worry about having to pay legal fees each month, which they might not be able to get back at the end.  The client also has the peace of mind of knowing that their “worst case scenario” is losing the time spent on the case process, and that they will not be facing a bill at the end.  Of course, people who have suffered injuries, and who are perhaps going through difficult financial times, do not want to have to have the worry of legal fees on top of that.

When we first discuss a case with a new client we will always go through the various funding options so that the client can decide what is best for them.

We are proud to have represented many local and national clients on a no-win-no-fee basis, which has enabled them to secure justice in situations where they would not have been able to afford bringing a case on a private-paying basis.

If you would like to have a no-obligation and confidential discussion about a potential case, or to learn more about the different ways of funding a case, please do not hesitate to contact us on 0161 399 1231 or info@astonknightsolicitors.co.uk.