The settlement figure is not the number you keep.

Almost every conversation about claims happens in headline numbers. The number that matters is the one left after everything else is paid — and the distance between those two figures surprises most people the first time they see it written out.

Three categories usually sit in between. Attorney fees, which are typically a percentage and depend on what the percentage is applied to. Medical liens and reimbursement claims, from health plans, providers or other parties who paid along the way. And case costs, which are separate from fees: records, imaging, experts, filing.

None of that is hidden or improper — it is simply structural, and it is easier to understand before a settlement is on the table than after. Knowing which deductions apply to your situation also changes how you read an offer: a higher gross figure with larger unresolved liens can leave less than a smaller, cleaner one.

The calculators below let you run your own figures, and the canonical fee and lien articles explain each deduction in plain language. Nothing here is legal or tax advice.