We are Chicago attorneys who will talk to you for free to answer any question you have or help you find the right lawyer for your case.  Call us any time at (312) 346-5320.  The service is free and we cover all of Illinois. Since 2001 we’ve helped more than 350,000 people and we would be thrilled to help you too.

Nobody wants to pay for a lawyer if they don’t have to.  Legal fees can be really expensive and in some cases even if you win, it feels like you lost and the only real winner is the attorney who took all of your money.

Because of this, we get a lot of calls from people looking for an attorney in Illinois who will work on consignment.  This is also known as contingency or “paid if you win.”  Essentially you don’t pay the attorney anything up front, but if they win the case, they get a percentage of what they recover for you, usually 1/3, but it can be more or less depending on the type of case and what you negotiate with them.  It’s risk/reward for them and you.

This type of fee isn’t available in all cases.  First, it can’t happen if you are in a case where money won’t be recovered such as a criminal case or when you are being sued.  It’s also not allowed by law in a divorce or custody case.  Attorneys typically don’t do it as well when the dollar amounts are small. In other words, if you are suing for $1,500, it’s not usually worth it to work on consignment.

So what types of cases can you get a lawyer who only gets paid if they win?

The most common cases are injury cases.  Car accidents, job injuries, medical malpractice, etc.  Every lawyer we know and recommend is consignment for those cases. If an attorney for an injury case asks you for up front money, you should run away.  It also happens with nursing home abuse, legal malpractice, social security claims (once you’ve been denied twice) and with class action lawsuits.

You can also get contingency attorneys in Illinois for some will contests (if the dollars are big enough), consumer fraud cases, some collection cases (when the defendant has money and your case is strong) and in some commercial litigation claims although when you are also being sued it makes finding an attorney much more challenging.

Bottom line is that there are consignment lawyers out there in Illinois.  If you would like our help in finding one, contact us at any time.