Arkansas: no statutory cap
Arkansas imposes no statutory cap on the contingency fee percentage in general personal injury or medical malpractice cases. The rate is set by private agreement, subject to a general reasonableness standard under Rule of Professional Conduct 1.5 rather than a fixed legal ceiling.
A real minority of states do cap fees
Several other states have taken a different approach, setting a hard statutory ceiling on what a personal injury attorney can charge. Michigan caps contingent fees at 33.33% across all personal injury cases. Connecticut uses a declining percentage scale, with the allowed rate shrinking as the recovered amount grows larger. These represent a genuine minority approach nationally — most states, like Arkansas, leave the rate to negotiation.
Arkansas actually came close
In 2016, a proposed constitutional amendment would have capped attorney contingency fees in medical-injury cases at one-third of the recovery after expenses, bundled together with a $250,000 floor on a non-economic damages cap for the same case type. Supporters argued it would ensure the "lion's share" of a recovery went to the injured party rather than legal fees. The measure ultimately did not take effect, leaving Arkansas's fee landscape exactly where it started: no cap, reasonableness governs.
A reasonableness standard still applies
The absence of a hard cap doesn't mean any percentage is automatically acceptable. Rule 1.5 still requires the fee to be reasonable, and requires the written agreement to properly disclose the percentage and how costs and expenses are handled — requirements Arkansas courts have shown they'll actually enforce.