Thomas C. Grajek | September 3, 2025 | Florida Law
You’ve probably wondered how lawyers make a profit from winning cases. Many legal clients do not fully grasp the expenses and risks lawyers face or how they get paid under different fee structures. The profitability of a legal practice depends on many factors, including the fee type charged by the firm and its record of success.
Fee Types in Florida
Lawyers in Florida will usually charge one of the following types of fees:
Flat Fees
Lawyers charge flat fees for well-defined projects that require a predictable amount of work. For example, a lawyer might charge $500 to help draft a simple will. The lawyer knows approximately how much work the project will require, so they can set the flat fee to cover their overhead costs and earn a profit based on the time and effort needed to complete the work.
Hourly Fees
Hourly fees are typically associated with open-ended projects or projects involving more unpredictable amounts of work. Criminal defense lawyers and civil litigators often charge hourly fees, and they usually always profit in these cases because they get paid for the time spent working on the case.
Contingency Fees
Contingency fees are dependent on a case’s outcome. If the lawyer wins, they take a percentage of the amount recovered for the client. These fees are most commonly charged by personal injury lawyers, who profit by picking strong cases they know they have the best shot at winning.
Expenses and Risks that Contingency Fee Attorneys Face
Contingency fee lawyers, in particular, incur several expenses while handling a case. If they win the case, their client will reimburse them, but a losing outcome can force the lawyer to eat these fees.
Therefore, personal injury lawyers will often front payments for the following fees:
- Court filing fees
- Deposition expenses
- Expert witness costs
Moreover, the lawyer has overhead expenses that must be paid from any contingency fees collected. Staff salaries, rent, and utilities must be paid, regardless of whether the lawyer wins their cases.
As such, a lawyer faces substantial risks when they offer representation for a contingency fee. Specifically, if they lose a case, they do not get paid and cannot pay those overhead costs as a result. More importantly, the client will not have the resources to reimburse the lawyer for any costs incurred. Thus, the lawyer stands to lose a significant amount of money by losing cases.
How Contingency Fee Lawyers Profit from Winning Cases
Of course, the other side of the coin here is that the lawyer can earn a profit by winning cases. Specifically, the lawyer will typically receive a portion of the settlement or jury award they win for their client. The lawyer will also be reimbursed for any money they spent on litigation expenses on the client’s behalf.
However, winning cases is only part of the equation. The lawyer must also earn enough to justify the time spent working on the case. Thus, lawyers must choose cases that they strongly believe in. And such cases must be worth enough to justify the time and effort spent on them.
For example, a client may have a solid slip and fall case based on a security video that shows a worker spilling something without cleaning it up. However, if the client only suffered a hip bruise in the fall, a lawyer might not earn enough to justify the time spent filing an insurance claim and negotiating a settlement.
Conversely, a client with a strong and valuable case could earn a significant profit for the lawyer. Thus, injury lawyers will carefully assess the evidence of liability and loss before offering to represent a client.
Law Firm Profitability and Record of Success
Altogether, profitable law firms are often successful, and successful law firms are often profitable. Those profits come from carefully assessing cases and then putting together a legal strategy to maximize the client’s financial compensation.
Contact the Lakeland Personal Injury Law Firm of Thomas C. Grajek, Attorney At Law Today For Help
For more information, please contact the Lakeland and New Port Richey Personal Injury law firm at the nearest location to schedule a free consultation today.
We serve Polk County, Pasco County, and its surrounding areas:
Thomas C. Grajek, Attorney At Law Lakeland
2306 Florida Ave S Lakeland, FL 33803
(863)-999-9000