Automotive

Problem with personal injury lawyer after accident

  • Last Updated:
  • Sep 12th, 2016 12:41 pm
Jr. Member
User avatar
Dec 10, 2008
146 posts
64 upvotes
Cold Lake
Wood0209 wrote:
messupdude wrote: Wow I've never heard a lawyer charge for expenses. When I got into an accident a few years ago my lawyer told me there was 3 things he charges for. 24%+Disembursement+Tax.
Expenses = disbursements.

Disbursement is the act of paying out or disbursing money, such as money paid out to run a business, cash expenditures, dividend payments, and/or the amounts that a lawyer might have to pay out on a person's behalf in connection with a transaction.

Courier - an expense charged to the client as a disbursement.
Photocopying - disbursement charged per page
Court filing fee - an expense charges to the client as a disbursement
Totally did not know that. ICBC paid all the disbursement to my lawyer. It was seperate from my cash out.
Deal Addict
Dec 30, 2007
1005 posts
191 upvotes
Ottawa, ON
messupdude wrote:
Totally did not know that. ICBC paid all the disbursement to my lawyer. It was seperate from my cash out.
That sounds like ICBC retained a lawyer to act on your behalf and covered all the expenses. In this case they would not be paid on a contingency basis, but likely a fee basis. You'd only see the end of the settlement amount that is owed to you. Any portion of the settlement that relates specifically to legal costs (fees and disbursements) would be paid to ICBC as they are the ones fronting the legal costs.

Based on OP's first post, I am of the impression he retained his own counsel on a contingency basis to fight the insurance company to get fair compensation. Because of this, OP will see the fees and disbursements being charged following the settlement.

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