The fee charged by the lawyer is an obvious expense. Still there are other costs that have to be taken care of, as the case works its way through the legal system.
Costs associated with effort to reach a settlement
Money paid at the courthouse, when the case gets filed. The filing of a case creates a point in the legal system that personal injury lawyer in London from both sides can contact, once those same 2 sides have chosen to settle. Once the court has learned about the settlement, then it orders payment of the awaited compensation.
Money must be paid for the administrative expenses. People handle the administrative tasks. Someone must be paid to complete and file all of the relevant paperwork. Cost of gathering information: lawyers need evidence. Investigators get paid to go after needed evidence. Some evidence has been filed away, such as a police report or a claimant’s medical records. Money must be paid for retrieval of the filed information.
How the costs increase, when a case goes to trial
A deposition must precede the trial. That fact introduces one new source of costs. Someone must be paid to record all the statements made during the deposition.
If the plaintiff’s lawyer finds it necessary to have the jury hear from an expert witness, then that expert needs to be paid. In the case of a car accident, there could be more than one expert witness. One of the experts might address medical issues, those relating to the plaintiff’s injuries. One of the other experts might be an engineer, a person that could speak about the road’s design. The jurors at a trial receive a stipend. The money for the stipend comes from the plaintiff.
Once a lawsuit has been filed, the plaintiff needs to serve the defendant with copies of the summons and the complaint. Plaintiffs have to pay the court, in order to obtain such copies. Plaintiffs must get certificates that serve as proof that the defendant was served with both the summons and the complaint.
Lawyers like to have exhibits that can be shown to the jury. The same exhibits get taken into the room where the jurors deliberate. An attorney pays for the exhibits, and then gets reimbursed by taking money out of the client’s court-ordered judgment.
Plaintiffs must cover their out-of-pocket costs, as their case gets heard in a courtroom. Think about what the typical person must pay, before going into a public building. Those that drove a vehicle to such buildings have to pay for the privilege of parking there. If a trial does not take place close to the plaintiff’s home, then that fact could add to the list of the plaintiff’s expenses.