Engaging Solicitors
Research has revealed that most accident and personal injury victims do not take recourse to legal action as the litigation costs prove to be very expensive keeping legal aid out of the reach of the common man. Additionally the fear that an unsuccessful appeal will force the petitioner to recompense the legal costs incurred by the defendant, make most victims shy away from seeking judicial intervention.
Some solicitors who work on a ‘no win no fee’ basis, are quite preferred because such solicitors agree to take up such personal injury, accident and wrongful negligence cases on an understanding that they are not entitled to any fees from the clients if the case is lost in court. The Conditional Fees Agreement (CFA) is the basic agreement that binds a lawyer and his client to the ‘No win no fee’ deal.
According to English law the losing party is burdened with all the legal expenses of the winning party including court fees, solicitor fees, related insurance premiums etc. According to this law the court will direct the defendant to pay the legal expenses incurred by the successful plaintiff including his solicitor’s fees. It also means that upon losing a case though a claimant need not pay his own solicitor he will have to bear the expenses of the defendant. Attorneys also need to make provisions to ensure payment for their services in the event of losing a case. This danger to the client as well as to the solicitor can be done away by taking an After the Event insurance policy.
An ATE policy is your insurance against recompensing defendant’s expenses when you lose. It also guarantees payment to the solicitors if they lose. ATE insurance is in effect your guardian angel assigned to protect you from any expenses that are incurred upon losing a case. The payment for the premium is paid only at the end of a trial and again only if the verdict is in your favor. In fact ATE insurance may also not be necessary if your vehicle / medical or other related insurance include options to cover litigation costs as well.
While drafting CFA, ensure that a clause of 100% compensation is included in the wording to thwart any attempts by the solicitor to stake claim on a portion of your winnings. With all these practices in place, justice is now within reach of the rich and poor alike.
For more information, be sure to visit the following:
No win no fee solicitors
No win no fee litigation
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