What Percentage Do Lawyers Take in Wisconsin Workers’ Comp Cases?

by Lisa Pierobon Mays | Sep 1, 2022 | Workers' Compensation

By Attorney Lisa Pierobon Mays

Updated September 2026

In a disputed Wisconsin workers’ compensation case, the lawyer’s fee generally may not exceed 20 percent of the amount in dispute that is awarded, collected or settled, unless the department has authorized otherwise in advance (Wis. Stat. § 102.26(2); DWD 80.43). When the insurer admits liability, doesn’t dispute the amount owed and no hearing or appeal is needed, the cap is 10 percent and no more than $250. The Department of Workforce Development approves the fee.

Wisconsin law sets the ceiling on the percentage a lawyer can take in a workers’ comp case, not the price: a lawyer may charge less, and the actual fee comes from the fee agreement and the department’s approval, but no one who charges a fee to pursue a claim may exceed the cap unless the department has authorized it in advance. What you pay turns on the details below, each verified against the Wisconsin Statutes and the rules of the Department of Workforce Development (DWD), with worked examples in dollars.

The rule: 20 percent, written into Wis. Stat. § 102.26(2)

The fee limit comes from Wis. Stat. § 102.26(2):

“Unless previously authorized by the department, no fee may be charged or received for the enforcement or collection of any claim for compensation nor may any contract for that enforcement or collection be enforceable when that fee, inclusive of all taxable attorney fees paid or agreed to be paid for that enforcement or collection, exceeds 20 percent of the amount at which the claim is compromised or of the amount awarded, adjudged, or collected…”

Two things follow from that sentence:

• It is one ceiling, even when several people work on the claim. The limit covers “the combined charges of attorneys, solicitors, representatives, and adjusters who knowingly combine their efforts” on a claim.
• It is measured against money recovered: the amount “awarded, adjudged, or collected,” or the amount of a settlement, which Wisconsin law calls a compromise.
• The department can allow a different fee in advance. The sentence opens “Unless previously authorized by the department,” so 20 percent is the ceiling unless DWD has approved something else beforehand.

What “the amount in dispute” means

DWD’s fee rule, Wis. Admin. Code § DWD 80.43, describes the statute as providing “a maximum attorney’s fee of 20% of the amount in dispute.” The 20 percent follows the contested benefits, not every dollar the insurer pays you.

Under DWD 80.43(4), a dispute depends on “a disagreement after the employer or insurer has had adequate time and information to take a position on liability.” Filing for a hearing, or holding one, does not by itself create a dispute, but “a finding that a dispute exists shall not be precluded by an employer’s or insurer’s purposeful inactivity on the issue of liability.”

For example, say the insurer keeps paying your wage-loss (temporary disability) benefits but, after its own independent medical examination (IME), disputes the permanent disability rating your doctor assigned. The 20 percent is measured against the disputed permanent disability benefits a lawyer recovers, not the wage-loss checks already being paid.

When nothing is disputed: 10 percent, never more than $250

The same subsection sets a much lower cap for claims the insurer is not fighting:

“…except that in cases of admitted liability in which there is no dispute as to the amount of compensation due and in which no hearing or appeal is necessary, the fee charged may not exceed 10 percent, but not to exceed $250, of the amount at which the claim is compromised or of the amount awarded, adjudged, or collected.”

All three conditions must hold: liability is admitted, nobody disputes how much compensation is due, and no hearing or appeal is necessary. Then the most a lawyer can charge is the smaller of 10 percent or $250.

Benefits a lawyer cannot take a percentage of

DWD 80.43 adds two more limits:

• Medical bills other sources can pay. “Fees shall not be allowed on medical expenses to the extent that other sources, such as group insurance, are available to pay such expenses.” (DWD 80.43(2))
• Permanent total disability after 500 weeks. “Fees for permanent total disability shall not be allowed on compensation awards due beyond 500 weeks.” (DWD 80.43(3)) Five hundred weeks is a little under ten years of weekly payments.

Costs, and what happens if nothing is recovered

The 20 percent is the lawyer’s fee; costs, the out-of-pocket expenses of pursuing the claim, are separate. DWD’s guide for injured workers, Facts for Injured Workers (WKC-18-P), says: “You will also have to pay for your attorney’s costs. The fees and costs will be deducted from your payments.” Mays Law Office handles workers’ compensation cases on a contingency fee: the fee is a percentage of what is awarded, collected or settled, so if nothing is recovered, there is no attorney’s fee. That is a term of our fee agreement rather than a rule in the statute, and costs are a separate question. Before you sign a fee agreement, ask which costs are likely and how they are handled if nothing is recovered, and get the answer in writing.

The department approves the fee, and any settlement

A Wisconsin workers’ comp fee is not simply whatever a fee agreement says. DWD 80.43 gives the department “the responsibilities for fixing the fee and providing for the direct payment of the fee,” and under § 102.26(3) the fee can be written into the award and paid directly to the lawyer. In fixing it, DWD must “balance the need to preserve the maximum amount of benefits for the injured employee and the need for fees which are sufficient to insure adequate representation.” Since January 1, 2026, the administrative law judges who decide disputed claims work for DWD again, under 2025 Wisconsin Act 33.

Settlements, called compromises, get the same scrutiny. DWD’s guide says “all compromises must be approved by the WC Division to make sure they are reasonable,” and warns that once you agree to one, “it is legally very difficult to change it.”

Worked examples in dollars

Example figures only: simple arithmetic under the rules above, not estimates of what any claim is worth. Costs are not included, and the department approves the actual fee.

A lawsuit against someone other than your employer works differently

Workers’ compensation is generally the exclusive remedy against your employer, but sometimes someone else caused the injury, such as a negligent driver or the maker of a defective scaffold. Wis. Stat. § 102.29 preserves your right to bring a tort claim against that “3rd party,” and filing a workers’ comp claim does not take that right away. That case can seek damages workers’ compensation never pays, such as pain and suffering.

The 20 percent cap does not govern the fee in the third-party lawsuit. Instead, § 102.29(1)(b) sets the order in which any recovery is divided:

1. The reasonable cost of collection, including attorney fees, is paid first.
2. “One-third of the remainder shall in any event be paid to the injured employee.”
3. The employer or its insurer is reimbursed for the workers’ compensation it has paid or must pay.
4. Any balance goes to the employee.

The employer or its insurer must get notice and a chance to join the lawsuit, each party has an equal voice in prosecuting it, and a settlement is void unless a court or DWD approves both the settlement and how the money is divided (Wis. Stat. § 102.29(1)(a), (b) and (d)).

Do you need a lawyer at all?

No. DWD’s page for injured workers says that “while it is not a requirement, many people believe that it is beneficial to have an attorney involved in the hearing since it is a legal proceeding.” If your claim is denied and you have not hired a lawyer, DWD says it “will initially follow the informal process”: staff in DWD’s Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Unit review the issues and the medical support and, if they think the dispute can be resolved without a hearing, contact you and the insurer. If not, you can request a formal hearing before an administrative law judge, and DWD charges no filing fee for the application. Our guide to filing a workers’ compensation claim in Wisconsin covers the steps and deadlines.

An accepted claim can still stall. For one example, read Attorney Lisa Pierobon Mays’s case study, Accepted But Still Unpaid.

Frequently asked questions

What percentage does a lawyer take in a Wisconsin workers’ comp case?

Generally no more than 20 percent in a disputed case: unless the department has authorized otherwise in advance, Wis. Stat. § 102.26(2) and DWD 80.43 cap the fee at 20 percent of the amount in dispute that is awarded, collected or settled. If the insurer admits liability, doesn’t dispute the amount due and no hearing or appeal is needed, the cap is 10 percent and no more than $250.

Do I owe my lawyer a fee if I don’t win my workers’ comp case?

Not at Mays Law Office. We handle workers’ compensation cases on a contingency fee, so the fee is a percentage of what is awarded, collected or settled; if nothing is recovered, there is no attorney’s fee. That comes from the fee agreement, not the statute, so ask any lawyer you consider, and ask separately how costs are handled if nothing is recovered.

Does my lawyer take a percentage of my workers’ comp medical bills?

Not of medical expenses that other sources, such as group health insurance, are available to pay; DWD 80.43(2) says fees “shall not be allowed” on them. Beyond that rule, how a fee applies to medical expenses resolved in a settlement depends on the case, and DWD reviews the fee in every compromise.

What is the fee if my workers’ comp claim isn’t disputed?

If the insurer admits liability, doesn’t dispute the amount of compensation due and no hearing or appeal is necessary, Wis. Stat. § 102.26(2) limits the fee to 10 percent and no more than $250. On $1,500 collected, that is at most $150; on $6,000, at most $250.

Who approves a lawyer’s fee in a Wisconsin workers’ comp case?

The Department of Workforce Development. Under DWD 80.43 the department fixes the fee and provides for its direct payment, and DWD must approve every compromise settlement to make sure it is reasonable.

Do I need a lawyer to get workers’ comp in Wisconsin?

No. DWD says a lawyer is not a requirement, though many people believe one is beneficial at a hearing because it is a legal proceeding. If your claim is denied and you have no lawyer, it first follows DWD’s informal Alternative Dispute Resolution process; if that does not resolve it, you can request a hearing before an administrative law judge.

From Mays Law Office

A work injury brings enough worry without wondering what a lawyer will cost. The short version: Wisconsin law caps the fee, the department approves it, and at Mays Law Office, if nothing is recovered there is no attorney’s fee.

Attorney Lisa Pierobon Mays concentrates her practice on workers’ compensation for injured Wisconsin workers. Admitted to the Wisconsin bar in 1995, she has more than twenty-five years of experience and served on the Board of Directors of the Wisconsin Association of Worker’s Compensation Attorneys (District 7) from 2001 to 2025. Mays Law Office handles workers’ compensation cases on a contingency fee, and the first consultation is free. The office is in Middleton and represents injured workers statewide, including in Madison. Se habla español.

Learn more about our Wisconsin workers’ compensation practice, or contact Mays Law Office to talk through how these rules apply to your claim.

This article provides general legal information, not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Fees and costs in any case depend on the signed fee agreement and DWD’s approval.