What Is No Win No Fee?

How Does No Win No Fee Work?

Direct Answer: Under a CFA, professional fees depend on the agreed outcome. If the case succeeds, the solicitor may charge base costs plus a success fee. In a personal-injury case at first instance, the amount taken from damages is separately capped at 25% of PSLA plus past pecuniary loss, net of recoverable benefits. QOCS protection is qualified, not absolute.

Under a no win no fee arrangement, your solicitor agrees to handle your case on the basis that they will not charge you their professional fees if the case is unsuccessful. This is formalised in a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) — a written contract that must comply with the requirements of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 and the Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013.

If your case succeeds, your solicitor is entitled to charge their base costs (the normal fees for the work done) plus a success fee. The success fee is a percentage uplift on the base costs, reflecting the risk the solicitor took in running the case. It can be up to 100% of base costs, but for personal injury claims it is capped at 25% of the damages awarded for general damages (pain, suffering, and loss of amenity) and past financial losses.

The Role of LASPO 2012

The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) fundamentally changed how no win no fee works in England and Wales. Before LASPO (prior to April 2013), success fees and ATE insurance premiums were recoverable from the losing defendant. Post-LASPO, these costs must be paid by the successful claimant from their damages — hence the 25% cap to protect claimants from excessive deductions.

LASPO also introduced Qualified One-Way Costs Shifting (QOCS) for personal injury claims, which provides significant cost protection: if you lose, you generally do not have to pay the defendant's legal costs.

What Are Disbursements?

Disbursements are the out-of-pocket expenses incurred during the case — separate from the solicitor's professional fees. Common disbursements include:

• Medical expert report fees
• Court issue fees
• Barrister fees (counsel's fees)
• Police report fees
• Travel and accommodation expenses

If the case is lost, the claimant may be responsible for these disbursements unless protected by After-the-Event (ATE) insurance.

After-the-Event Insurance

ATE insurance is a policy taken out after an incident has occurred (hence "after the event") to protect against the risk of having to pay disbursements and, in some cases, the opponent's costs. The premium is typically deferred and only payable if the case succeeds. Most no win no fee solicitors arrange ATE insurance as standard.

QOCS — Your Cost Protection

Qualified One-Way Costs Shifting (QOCS) is a rule that protects personal injury claimants from adverse costs orders. Under QOCS (introduced by the Jackson Reforms in 2013), if you bring a personal injury claim and lose, you generally do not have to pay the defendant's legal costs. The protection is lost only in cases of fundamental dishonesty, claims struck out as an abuse of process, or where the claimant has entered into a pre-commencement funding arrangement.

No Win No Fee vs US Contingency Fees

The UK no win no fee system (CFA) differs significantly from the US contingency fee model. In the US, the attorney takes a percentage of the damages (typically 33–40%). In the UK, the solicitor charges base costs plus a success fee — they do not take a share of the damages directly (unless using a Damages-Based Agreement). For more detail, see our US contingency fee guide.