The most useful questions to ask a personal injury lawyer are the ones California law already gives you a reason to ask. A contingency fee agreement has to be in writing and has to say specific things. The State Bar publishes every lawyer’s license status and public discipline record. Lawyers have a legal duty to keep you informed. Here is how to use each of those before you sign anything.
Check the license before the first meeting
The State Bar of California’s Attorney Licensee Search, at apps.calbar.ca.gov, lets you look up any California lawyer by name or bar number. The profile shows whether the license is active, the date of admission, and a table of license status changes, disciplinary actions, and administrative actions.
Two minutes there answers two questions: Is this person licensed and active, and is there any public discipline? A clean profile does not prove that nobody ever complained. Under Business and Professions Code section 6086.1, State Bar investigations are confidential until formal charges are filed, so a complaint that never led to charges will not appear. The State Bar also removes some older administrative suspensions, such as for unpaid licensing fees, from the profile under its own policy. Then compare the name and bar number on the profile with the lawyer named in the agreement you are asked to sign.
Ask to read the agreement before you sign it
Business and Professions Code section 6147 governs contingency fee contracts in California. It requires the contract to be in writing, and it requires the lawyer to give you a copy signed by both of you at the time you enter into it. The contract must include:
- The contingency fee rate you and the lawyer agreed on.
- How costs and disbursements will affect the fee and your recovery.
- To what extent, if any, you could be required to pay the lawyer for related matters that the agreement does not cover.
- A statement that the fee is not set by law and is negotiable between lawyer and client. The exception is a claim against a health care provider for professional negligence, where Business and Professions Code section 6146 sets maximum rates, and the contract must say those are maximums and that a lower rate can be negotiated.
If a contingency agreement does not comply with section 6147, the statute makes it voidable at the client’s option, and the lawyer is then entitled to a reasonable fee instead.
Questions that turn those requirements into answers:
- Is the percentage calculated before or after costs are deducted?
- Does the percentage change if a lawsuit is filed, or if the case goes to trial?
- Does the agreement cover the property damage claim, a claim under my own uninsured motorist coverage, or an appeal?
For a broader look at how lawyers in this area are paid, see how much a personal injury lawyer costs in California.
Ask how costs work, including if there is no recovery
Costs are different from the fee. They are the out-of-pocket expenses of the case: filing fees, records fees, deposition transcripts, and payments to physicians and other consultants who review records or testify.
Under Rule 1.8.5 of the California Rules of Professional Conduct, a lawyer may advance those costs, and repayment may be made to depend on the outcome of the case. That is a permission, not a requirement, so agreements differ. Ask directly:
- Who pays costs while the case is open?
- If there is no recovery, do I owe anything for costs?
- Will you check with me before spending on large items?
Whatever the answer is, it should be written into the agreement, because section 6147 requires the contract to explain how costs affect your recovery.
Ask who handles medical liens and bills
A settlement check is rarely all yours to keep. Health plans, Medi-Cal, Medicare, and providers who treated you on a lien may all claim repayment from the recovery. How those claims are handled can matter as much as the size of the settlement.
Ask who negotiates the liens, whether reductions are requested, and whether you will see a written breakdown of every deduction before money is distributed. Rule 1.15 requires a lawyer to notify you, absent good cause, within 14 days of receiving funds in which you have an interest, and to account to you in writing for funds held on your behalf.
Ask who will actually work on your case
The person who signs you up is not always the person who handles the file. Ask:
- Who will be my day-to-day contact, and how do I reach them?
- Will the lawyer I am meeting be the one who negotiates with the insurer and appears in court?
- Will my case be referred to, or worked on with, another firm?
That last question matters. Under Rule 1.5.1, lawyers who are not in the same firm can divide a fee only with a written agreement between them and your written consent, after full written disclosure that the fee will be divided, who the lawyers are, and the terms. The total fee cannot go up just because it is being divided.
Ask how often you will hear from the lawyer
Business and Professions Code section 6068(m) requires a lawyer to respond promptly to reasonable status inquiries and to keep clients reasonably informed of significant developments. Rule 1.4.1 requires a lawyer to promptly tell you all amounts, terms, and conditions of any written settlement offer.
Those are minimums. Ask what normal looks like: how often you will get an update without asking, how quickly calls and emails are returned, and how you will be told about an offer. A personal injury case can run a long time, and how long it takes depends heavily on when treatment ends.
Ask about trial experience
Most injury claims settle, but an insurer’s offer often reflects its view of what could happen if the case does not settle, and that view can include the lawyer across the table. Reasonable questions:
- Have you tried personal injury cases to a verdict, and in which courts?
- If my case does not settle, will you try it, or refer it to someone else?
- Have you worked on the insurance defense side, and what did that teach you about how claims are evaluated?
Be wary of any answer that sounds like a promise. No lawyer can honestly tell you what your case will settle for at the first meeting.
What to do before you sign
- Look up the lawyer on the State Bar’s Attorney Licensee Search.
- Ask for the agreement in advance and read the fee, cost, and lien terms.
- Get the answer about costs with no recovery in writing.
- Ask who your contact will be and whether any other firm will be involved.
- Keep your signed copy. Section 6147 entitles you to one. For more on California injury claims generally, see our personal injury page.
About the author. Joshua B. Adelpour is the founder of Not My Fault Law Group, APC, a California personal injury firm based in Woodland Hills. He is licensed by the State Bar of California, Bar No. 318226, and spent nearly a decade defending insurance companies in civil litigation before opening the firm. Call (213) 800-0706 for a free consultation.
This article is general information about California law and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney client relationship. Every case depends on its own facts. Last updated October 6, 2026.