The attorney's fee: compensation for the work
The contingency fee is the attorney's own compensation for handling the case — calculated as a percentage of the settlement or award. It's earnings, not a reimbursement, and it's what the attorney keeps for taking on the risk and the work of the case.
Case costs: real expenses the case required
Case costs are something entirely different: actual out-of-pocket expenses the case genuinely needed. This typically includes expert witness fees, court filing fees, the cost of obtaining medical records, deposition transcripts, and similar litigation expenses. These are reimbursed, not earned.
Confirm the order before you sign
Nevada client guidance consistently recommends reviewing the contingency fee agreement to verify whether case costs are deducted before or after the attorney's fee is calculated. Calculating the fee on the full settlement before subtracting costs applies the percentage to a larger base than calculating the fee after costs are already subtracted — a real difference on the same gross recovery.
The malpractice flat-fee cap doesn't absorb costs
In a Nevada medical malpractice claim, the flat 35% cap under NRS 7.095 applies specifically to the attorney's fee. Case costs remain a separate, independently documented category of reimbursed expense, regardless of how the fee itself is capped.
Who fronts the money while the case is pending
Commonly, the attorney's office advances case costs as the litigation proceeds, with reimbursement coming out of the eventual settlement or award. The specific arrangement, including what happens to those advanced costs if the case doesn't result in any recovery, depends entirely on the individual fee agreement.