If you live in East Kurrajong and you've seen “no win, no fee” in a lawyer's advertising, it helps to know what the phrase generally means before you rely on it. In most cases it refers to an arrangement where you pay the lawyer's professional fees only if the claim succeeds. The details differ between lawyers, and some costs may still be payable either way. This page explains what to ask, and our claim check is free.
Hawkesbury · No win, no fee explained
No win, no fee lawyer: what it means in East Kurrajong
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A costs arrangement, not a promise
“No win, no fee” generally describes a costs arrangement where the lawyer's professional fees are only payable if the claim succeeds. The agreement that sets this out is often called a conditional costs agreement, because payment depends on a condition: success. Beyond that basic idea, the details vary between lawyers, which is why the written terms matter more than the phrase itself.
No win, no fee in a CTP claim
In statutory benefits matters, the insurer pays the legal costs the rules allow, and some disputes allow none. For damages claims, the maximum a lawyer can charge is also capped. So in a CTP claim, “no win, no fee” is only part of the costs picture. The rest is set by the Regulation, and a lawyer should be able to explain in writing how both apply to your claim.
If your questions are about statutory benefits and your accident was on or after 1 December 2017, the free CTP Legal Advisory Service may answer them without any costs arrangement. You can ask CTP Assist (1300 656 919) to put you through to it. Its limits matter: no damages claims, no older-scheme claims, and nothing that's already in internal review or before the Commission. Beyond those limits, the costs questions on this page come into play.
Read next:What does a CTP lawyer cost?
Reading costs terms from East Kurrajong, by phone and online
If Hawkesbury District Health Service or Nepean Hospital treated you, a claim may later need reports from those doctors. Ask any lawyer who pays for such reports if the claim doesn't succeed. Council areas such as Hawkesbury City Council play no part in what a lawyer can charge on a CTP claim. The limits are set by state regulation and apply across NSW, so compare lawyers on their written terms, not their address. There's no need to travel to Windsor to compare costs arrangements. From East Kurrajong, you can request written terms by email, talk them through by phone, and use our free claim check online or by phone.
- Region
- Hawkesbury
- Postcode
- 2758
- Local government area
- Hawkesbury City Council
- Distance to Windsor
- ~12 km
Free claim check
Check your claim before you sign anything
Call (02) 7238 7379 or start online. It's free, with no obligation, so you can settle the lawyer question before any talk of costs.
Questions to ask before you sign a costs agreement
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.
- If the claim doesn't succeed, what would I have to pay, if anything?
- Will you tell me in writing if that estimate changes?
- What happens to costs if I end the agreement before the claim finishes?
- How are your professional fees worked out if the claim succeeds?
- Can I take the agreement away and read it before signing?
- Is there a cooling-off period after I sign?
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.
Before costs: do you need legal help?
Plenty of CTP claims run from start to finish without a lawyer, which makes no win, no fee beside the point. Others clearly need legal help. These lists give a rough guide to each.
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
- The insurer has refused your whole claim
- Your injuries are serious and the claim may run for years
You may not need one
- Your statutory benefits claim is accepted and payments are arriving
- You're happy with how the insurer has handled things so far
- One declined treatment request can be sorted out with a report from your doctor
If the gap is treatment rather than legal help, we can put you in touch with doctors and allied health who work with CTP claims. They can also help keep your Certificate of Fitness accurate and current.
Not quite your situation?
- Injured at work rather than on the road? That is usually a workers compensation claim, which runs under different rules from CTP. The free claim check 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 East Kurrajong
- If the bigger question is whether a CTP lawyer is worth it for your claim at all, the CTP lawyer page answers that first. CTP lawyer in East Kurrajong
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
- The cost of any expert opinion the lawyer arranges
- Interpreter or translation costs, if any
Comparing two lawyers' terms side by side
If you're speaking with more than one lawyer, compare their terms on the same points: what's payable if the claim doesn't succeed, how disbursements are treated, how fees on success are worked out, and what the estimate of total costs is. A headline label tells you little. Two arrangements both called no win, no fee can leave you in quite different positions.
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.
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.
Our claim check is free
Here's the only promise we make about cost: our claim check is free, and there's no obligation. We look at where your claim is up to and tell you what help it needs. Sometimes that's an independent lawyer, and then the costs questions on this page matter. Often it's a doctor, CTP Assist or simply a clear next step, and no costs agreement is needed.
Read next:How our claim check works
Frequently asked questions
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.
No. It generally means the lawyer's own fees aren't charged if the claim doesn't succeed. Other costs may still apply, such as disbursements for medical reports, depending on the terms. If the claim succeeds, fees are generally paid, often from the compensation. Legal costs in a CTP claim are capped by regulation as well. The only free thing we can promise is our own claim check, which comes with no obligation.
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.
Ask both for their terms in writing, then compare them on the same points: what you'd owe if you lose, how disbursements are handled, how fees are worked out on success, how success is defined and the estimate of total costs. If one set of terms is vague on any of these, ask for more detail. Take your time; a costs agreement doesn't have to be signed at the first conversation.
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.
Ask about this before you sign, because the answer depends on the agreement and the rules that apply to it. An agreement may include a cooling-off period, and a clear one should explain what happens to costs if you end the arrangement early, including any work already done. If you're unsure, take the agreement away, read it and ask questions first. Signing is easier to delay than to undo.
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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.