In most personal injury cases, if you decide to retain a lawyer to handle your case, he or she will represent you under a contingency fee. This means that you do not pay anything 'up front', and your lawyer will only be paid if your case reaches a favorable solution for you -- either through an agreed-upon settlement or after a civil court trial. Then, your lawyer will collect a percentage that was agreed-upon in the initial fee agreement you signed. Typically, this percentage is around 33 percent of the settlement amount, but many fee agreements spell out that the percentage is lower if the case resolves before a lawsuit is filed, then the lawyer's cut increases gradually the further along the case progresses. See: Lawyers' Fees in Your Personal Injury Case