The phrase sounds simple, but the arrangement behind it can vary a lot. Agreements treat disbursements such as medical reports in different ways, and success can be defined in different ways too. If you live in or near Barden Ridge, read any costs agreement before you sign and ask about anything unclear. Our free claim check can tell you whether you need a lawyer, and it comes with no obligation.
Sutherland Shire · No win, no fee explained
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Postcode: 2234
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Costs questions for people in Barden Ridge
If The Sutherland Hospital treated you, keep your records together. A lawyer may later need medical reports, and a clear costs agreement says who pays for them and when, whatever the outcome. Being in the Sutherland Shire Council area doesn't change the costs rules for a CTP claim. Maximum legal costs are set statewide by regulation, so a lawyer in another council area works to the same limits as one down the road. Barden Ridge is about 4 km west of Sutherland, and comparing costs terms doesn't need a trip there. Written terms can be sent by email, questions answered by phone, and our claim check runs by phone and online.
- Region
- Sutherland Shire
- Postcode
- 2234
- Local government area
- Sutherland Shire Council
- Distance to Sutherland
- ~4 km
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Check your claim before you sign anything
There's no charge for our claim check and no obligation. Tell us what's happened by phone or online, and we'll tell you whether a lawyer is likely to help.
What “no win, no fee” generally means
People often hear “no win, no fee” before they've decided whether they need a lawyer at all. It's worth separating the two questions. First, does your claim need legal help? Many CTP claims don't. Second, if it does, what are this lawyer's actual costs terms? The phrase answers neither question on its own, though the written terms answer the second.
Comparing costs terms
Line the written terms up side by side. Where one lawyer's terms are specific and another's are vague, ask the second to be specific too. If an answer changes between a phone call and the written terms, go by what's written and ask why. It's reasonable to take a few days to compare before you commit.
Same label, different terms
A label is not a comparison. Put the written terms from each lawyer side by side and check each against the same questions before you decide.
Before you sign: the costs questions that matter
You don't need to be an expert to read a costs agreement well. You need the right questions. Here are the ones that tend to matter most in a motor accident claim.
- Can I take the agreement away and read it before signing?
- Is there a cooling-off period after I sign?
- Can I have an estimate of total legal costs, in writing?
- Will you tell me in writing if that estimate changes?
- What happens to costs if I end the agreement before the claim finishes?
- What counts as the claim succeeding under this agreement?
General information, not legal advice. Costs terms differ between lawyers, and legal costs in CTP claims are regulated. Rely on the written terms you're given.
Which terms to get in writing
Ask the lawyer to confirm in writing how their fees would be calculated if the claim succeeds, and what, if anything, you'd owe if it doesn't. Ask the same about disbursements, and about costs if you end the agreement early. Written answers let you compare lawyers fairly and avoid surprises at the end of the claim.
Keep a copy
Keep the signed agreement and every costs update with your claim papers. If a bill arrives later, you'll want to check it against the terms you agreed to.
How CTP costs rules fit in
A NSW CTP claim has its own costs rules, and they apply whatever a lawyer's arrangement is called. Maximum legal costs are set by the Motor Accident Injuries Regulation and indexed each year. In a statutory benefits claim, costs are recoverable only where the Regulation or the Personal Injury Commission allows, and for some disputes they can't be recovered at all. A no win, no fee arrangement has to fit around those rules.
Before paying for advice, check what's free. SIRA's CTP Legal Advisory Service gives free legal advice on statutory benefits for accidents from 1 December 2017, and CTP Assist on 1300 656 919 can connect you with it. It won't run a damages claim, and it doesn't take on disputes that have already reached internal review or the Commission, but for many early questions it means no costs agreement is needed at all.
Read next:What does a CTP lawyer cost?
What you might still pay
If a claim doesn't succeed, you may still owe something, depending on the terms. That could include disbursements already paid out, such as medical reports. The agreement should also say what happens to costs if you end it early. None of this is meant to alarm you; it's the reason to read the costs terms closely and ask questions before signing.
- Filing or application fees, where they apply
- Interpreter or translation costs, if any
- Courier, copying and similar office costs
Start with a free claim check
Many people search for a no win, no fee lawyer when what they really need is a clear answer about their claim. Our claim check gives you that, free and with no obligation, by phone or online. If your claim does need legal help, you'll go into any costs conversation knowing why, and knowing which questions to ask.
Read next:How our claim check works
Lawyer or not? Settle that first
The costs question only matters if your claim needs a lawyer, and many claims never do. Here's when legal help is often worth paying for, and when you may manage without it.
Often worth talking to a lawyer
- You've been offered costs terms and can't tell what you'd owe if the claim failed
- A settlement offer is waiting for your reply
- Your dispute is heading to the Personal Injury Commission
- You're outside a time limit and need a quick legal view
You may not need one
- SIRA's free CTP Legal Advisory Service covers your statutory benefits question
- Your statutory benefits claim is accepted and payments are arriving
- You only need help with the claim form or finding the right insurer
Sometimes the real gap is medical, not legal. If your Certificate of Fitness or treatment records are thin, we can point you to doctors and allied health experienced with CTP claims, with no costs agreement involved.
Not quite your situation?
- If the injury happened at work, including on the road for work, workers compensation is usually the scheme that applies first, not CTP. After a crash, a CTP damages claim may still be possible. We can point you to the right help. Free claim check
- If you've decided to engage a solicitor and want to know about the first meeting and the costs documents, the compensation solicitor page covers them. Compensation solicitor in Barden Ridge
- If you're still deciding whether your claim needs legal help, the CTP lawyer page for Barden Ridge sets out when it usually does. CTP lawyer in Barden Ridge
Frequently asked questions
At least three things: what you'd pay if the claim fails, how disbursements such as medical reports are handled, and how fees are worked out if the claim succeeds. It also helps to have an estimate of total costs, a clear definition of success, and what happens if you end the agreement early. Written answers let you compare lawyers and check any later bill against what you agreed.
That depends on the costs terms, so ask for a written explanation before you sign. Generally, the lawyer's professional fees and any disbursements are paid, and some or all of that may come out of the compensation. In a CTP claim, maximum legal costs are capped by regulation, and in statutory benefits matters the insurer pays the costs the rules allow. Ask for a written breakdown at the end, too.
It depends on the lawyer, so ask before the conversation starts. Some lawyers may not charge for an initial discussion about a motor accident claim, and others may; don't assume either way. Our claim check is different: it's free, with no obligation, and it can tell you whether a lawyer would add anything to your claim before you have that conversation.
You may, depending on the agreement. Some arrangements ask you to cover disbursements, such as medical reports or fees for records, whatever the outcome. Others treat them differently. Ask too what you'd owe if you ended the agreement before the claim finished. Ask the lawyer to set out in writing exactly what you'd owe in an unsuccessful claim, and don't sign until the answer is clear.
In an injury claim, it's shorthand for a costs arrangement in which the lawyer is paid professional fees only if the claim succeeds. The arrangement is often set out in what's called a conditional costs agreement. The details vary between lawyers: how success is defined, how disbursements such as medical reports are handled, and what comes out of any compensation. The written terms are what count, so ask for them and read them before you sign.
In some ways, yes, because CTP legal costs are regulated. The Motor Accident Injuries Regulation sets maximum costs, and those amounts are indexed every year. For statutory benefits, a lawyer's costs are paid by the insurer, and only where the Regulation or the Personal Injury Commission allows; some disputes allow none. Damages work is capped as well. Whatever arrangement a lawyer offers has to work within those limits, so ask them to explain how.
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CTP Lawyer is not a law firm. This page is general information, not legal advice; the independent lawyer you speak with can advise on your own situation.