Workers comp attorney fees are a percentage of the benefits your lawyer secures, capped by state law and approved by a workers' comp judge or board. This workers comp attorney fees calculator applies the official 2026 rules for Texas, California, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Washington and Wisconsin, plus a custom percentage for other states. Enter your settlement or award and it shows the maximum fee, what you keep, and the rule behind the number.
The caps differ a lot from state to state. Texas, New Jersey, Georgia and Kansas cap fees at 25%. Illinois and Wisconsin use 20%, and Minnesota uses 20% up to a dollar limit. New York charges 15% on settlements and leaves future medical out. Florida uses a sliding scale that starts at 20% of the first $5,000, and California's official fee disclosure says fees normally range from 9% to 12%.
Attorneys for injured workers are often paid on a contingency basis, as the statement to New Jersey's 2024 fee law notes: the fee is a share of the benefits the lawyer helps you get. In each state on this page, a statute, rule or agency form sets a maximum, and in most of them a judge, board or commission must approve the fee. California's Appeals Board, Florida's judges of compensation claims, the New York Board, New Jersey's judges of compensation, the Georgia State Board and the Texas Division of Workers' Compensation all review attorney fees. Minnesota is an exception: a fee within its cap does not require approval.
The fee usually applies only to what the lawyer actually secured. Florida's statute tells the judge to consider only the benefits secured by the attorney. Minnesota says fees are never calculated on an undisputed portion of an award, Illinois bars fees on undisputed medical expenses, and Georgia's approval standards allow a percentage of income benefits only when the attorney's work caused those benefits to be paid.
Maximum fee = fee percentage x benefits the lawyer secured (after any exclusions)
You keep = benefits - approved fee - any costs you agreed to pay
| State | Maximum fee | Applies to | Approved by |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | Reasonable fee; DWC Form 3 says fees normally range from 9% to 12% | Benefits awarded | Workers' Compensation Appeals Board |
| Florida | 20% of the first $5,000, 15% of the next $5,000, 10% of the rest (first 10 years), 5% after 10 years | Benefits secured | Judge of compensation claims |
| Georgia | 25% | Income benefits | State Board of Workers' Compensation |
| Illinois | 20% (more only after a Commission hearing) | Compensation recovered and paid; none on undisputed medical | Workers' Compensation Commission |
| Kansas | 25% or a reasonable amount, whichever is less, plus actual expenses | Compensation recovered and paid | Director |
| Massachusetts | 15% before liability is accepted or found, 20% after | Lump-sum settlement | Set by statute |
| Minnesota | 20% of the first $275,000, $55,000 per injury (injuries on or after October 1, 2024); 20% of the first $130,000 and $26,000 for earlier injuries | Genuinely disputed compensation | No approval needed up to the cap |
| New Jersey | 25% of the judgment (since August 22, 2024) | Judgment | Judge of compensation |
| New York | 15% of a section 32 settlement (future medical excluded) or of awards above prior payments; permanent and death awards add 15 weeks of compensation | Award type | Workers' Compensation Board |
| Texas | 25% of the recovery | Claimant's recovery | Commissioner or court |
| Washington | 30% of the increase in the award; 15% of a claim resolution settlement | Increase or settlement total | Director or Board |
| Wisconsin | 20%; 10% up to $250 when liability is admitted and nothing is disputed | Amount compromised, awarded or collected | Department authorizes anything higher |
| Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Connecticut | No percentage written in the statute | All attorney fees | Commission or administrative law judge |
Rules change: New Jersey raised its cap from 20% to 25% in August 2024, and Minnesota raised its dollar limits for injuries on or after October 1, 2024. The calculator uses the rules in effect as of September 2026.
Labor Code 408.221 requires the Division of Workers' Compensation commissioner or a court to approve any attorney's fee, including a contingency fee. The fee is based on the attorney's time and expenses, is paid from the claimant's recovery in most cases, and may not exceed 25 percent of the claimant's recovery. The commissioner also sets guidelines for maximum fees for specific services.
Labor Code 4906 makes any fee unenforceable above a reasonable amount set by the Appeals Board, and an attorney may not demand or accept a fee until the Board approves it. DWC Form 3, the state's fee disclosure statement, says the fee is deducted from your benefits and normally ranges from 9% to 12% of the benefits awarded.
Section 440.34 sets a mandatory schedule: 20 percent of the first $5,000 of benefits secured, 15 percent of the next $5,000, 10 percent of the remaining benefits provided during the first 10 years after the claim is filed, and 5 percent of benefits secured after 10 years. The judge of compensation claims may not approve a settlement or fee agreement that exceeds it, and benefits secured do not include future medical benefits provided more than 5 years after the claim is filed.
Workers' Compensation Law 24 requires Board approval of every fee and sets a schedule by award type. Continuing weekly temporary disability benefits carry a fee of one-third of one week's compensation. An increased award for a past temporary disability period carries 15 percent of the increase. Schedule loss of use and facial disfigurement awards carry 15 percent of the compensation due above the carrier's previous payments. Permanent total, permanent partial and death awards carry 15 percent above prior payments plus 15 weeks of compensation. Section 32 settlements carry 15 percent, with future medical left out.
N.J.S.A. 34:15-64, as amended by P.L. 2024, c. 55 on August 22, 2024, allows a reasonable attorney fee not exceeding 25 percent of the judgment, up from 20 percent. The law applied to all claims pending on or after that date, and every claimant's attorney fee must be approved by the judge of compensation before payment.
The State Board's attorney fee approval form caps a percentage fee at 25% of income benefits, and its approval standards allow a percentage fee only when the attorney's work caused the income benefits to be paid. The percentage applies to income benefits.
In Illinois, 820 ILCS 305/16a limits the attorney's claim to 20% of the compensation recovered and paid unless the Commission allows more after a hearing, with an added limit tied to 364 weeks of permanent total disability in death and disability cases. Kansas limits the fee to a reasonable amount or 25% of the compensation recovered and paid, whichever is less, plus actual expenses, with a limit tied to 415 weeks of permanent total disability.
For a lump-sum settlement, General Laws chapter 152, section 13A limits the fee to 15 percent if the case settles before the insurer accepts liability or a decision finds liability, and 20 percent after. At earlier stages, the insurer pays set fees to your lawyer, such as $700 when it pays a contested initial claim before a conference and $1,000 when a judge orders payment after a conference. Those dollar amounts change every October 1.
Minnesota Statutes 176.081 makes 20 percent of the first $275,000 of compensation the maximum fee, with all fees for the same injury capped at $55,000. Laws 2024, chapter 97 raised these limits from $130,000 and $26,000 for dates of injury on or after October 1, 2024. Fees are based only on genuinely disputed claims.
Washington limits a fee before the Department of Labor and Industries to a reasonable fee of not more than 30 percent of the increase in the award, and fees on claim resolution settlement agreements to 15 percent of the total paid. Wisconsin caps fees at 20 percent of the amount compromised or awarded, and at 10 percent, no more than $250, when liability is admitted, the amount is not disputed and no hearing is needed.
Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Connecticut do not write a percentage into the statute. Their statutes make attorney fees subject to approval by the Workers' Compensation Commission, the Industrial Commission or the administrative law judge, who can reduce a fee found unreasonable. Use the "Other state" option with the percentage in your fee agreement to see your net amount.
A few rules shift the fee to the other side. In Texas, a carrier that seeks judicial review of an appeals panel decision is liable for the claimant's reasonable attorney's fees on each issue the claimant wins. Florida lets a claimant recover the scheduled fee from the carrier or employer in listed situations, such as successfully asserting a petition for medical benefits only. California's fee disclosure form gives the example of an employer that disputes a permanent disability evaluation obtained while you were not represented. Massachusetts insurers pay set fees at several stages, as described above.
If your settlement includes money for future medical care, it matters whether the fee applies to it. New York leaves benefits allocated for future medical expenses out of the section 32 fee, and Florida's benefits secured exclude future medical benefits provided more than 5 years after the claim is filed. If your settlement includes a Medicare set-aside, see our Medicare set-aside calculator, and check how Social Security disability interacts with your award with the SSDI workers comp offset calculator.
The caps above apply only to workers' compensation claims. For a car accident or other personal injury case against a third party, see our guide to attorney contingency fee percentages by state, and estimate the value of your comp claim first with the workers comp settlement calculator.
It depends on the state, and a judge or board must approve the fee. The caps on this page are 25% in Texas, New Jersey, Georgia and Kansas, 20% in Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota (up to a dollar limit), 15% for New York settlements, and a sliding scale in Florida that starts at 20% of the first $5,000. California's fee disclosure form says fees normally range from 9% to 12% of the benefits awarded.
Texas Labor Code 408.221 says an attorney's fee may not exceed 25 percent of the claimant's recovery. The fee is based on the attorney's time and expenses, must be approved by the Division of Workers' Compensation commissioner or a court, and is paid from the recovery except in certain carrier appeals.
The Workers' Compensation Appeals Board approves a reasonable fee after considering the responsibility the attorney assumed, the care exercised, the time involved and the results obtained. The state's fee disclosure statement (DWC Form 3) says attorney's fees normally range from 9% to 12% of the benefits awarded.
For a section 32 settlement, Workers' Compensation Law 24 sets the fee at 15 percent of the benefits paid under the approved agreement, and benefits allocated for future medical expenses are not included. Other awards have their own rules, such as 15 percent of a schedule loss of use award above prior payments.
Florida Statutes 440.34 sets the fee at 20 percent of the first $5,000 of benefits secured, 15 percent of the next $5,000, 10 percent of the remaining benefits provided during the first 10 years after the claim is filed, and 5 percent of benefits secured after 10 years. The judge of compensation claims must approve it.
In New York, benefits allocated for future medical expenses are excluded from the section 32 settlement fee. In Florida, benefits secured do not include future medical benefits provided more than 5 years after the claim is filed. Other states have their own rules, so ask your attorney to show the fee calculation in writing.
In some situations, yes. In Texas, a carrier that seeks judicial review and loses on an issue is liable for the claimant's reasonable fees on that issue. California's fee disclosure form gives the example of an employer disputing a permanent disability rating obtained while you were unrepresented. Massachusetts requires insurers to pay set fees at several stages, and Florida lets a claimant recover a fee from the carrier in listed situations.