Funding
We will provide initial advice on your claim FREE of charge.
We will then discuss with you at the outset the various options, which are open to you before we recommend the best option for you and explain in detail the funding arrangement before your claim proceeds.
The funding of your claim will depend upon a number of factors including where your claim is brought. We will advise you and we will recommend the best funding option for you.
ENGLAND & WALES
The basic rule in a personal injury claim in England & Wales is that the loser pays the winning party’s costs. In other words, if you succeed, your opponents will have to pay both your compensation and the vast majority if not all of your legal costs.
The methods of funding a claim in England & Wales include:-
Legal expenses insurance (LEI)
The best way to fund your claim is by relying upon legal expense insurance you may have as part of an existing insurance policy e.g. motor or household, or possibly credit card insurance which may cover all legal fees incurred on your behalf.
Trade Union
If you are a current member of a Trade Union you may be entitled to free legal assistance from them and they may also meet any legal costs incurred on your behalf. Please let us know whether your union may be prepared to cover your legal fees.
Conditional Fee (or “No win, no fee”) Agreement (CFA)
Under a CFA, we will not charge you for the work undertaken on your behalf (basic costs) should your claim be unsuccessful.
Should your claim be successful, we will recover the majority, if not all, our legal fees from your opponent(s) together with your compensation.
We recommend that at the outset, your claim is pursued with the benefit of insurance. In the event that your claim is unsuccessful the insurance policy will cover your opponent’s costs, VAT and expenses (disbursements) and in most cases it will also cover the cost of the expenses which you incur in investigating your claim.
Private Funding
This means that you are responsible for all legal costs incurred on your behalf. Unlike a CFA, if your claim is unsuccessful you will have to pay for the work undertaken on your behalf on the basis of the hourly rate agreed with us.
If court proceedings are started and your case is unsuccessful you will also be responsible for paying your opponents legal costs and expenses.
OUTSIDE ENGLAND & WALES
If your claim is pursued outside England & Wales again, it is normally best to fund your claim would be under a legal expenses insurance policy. However, if you do not have LEI, then we are normally able to arrange alternative funding (e.g. a contingency fee agreement where your legal fees are deducted from any compensation that you recover. If you are unsuccessful, you pay nothing towards our fees).
I should just like to thank Mark Lee and his team at Irwin Mitchell. I firmly believe that without their expertise and support I would not have received compensation. I now feel that some justice has been done and I can move on with my life.
Margaret, Alfreton