tired Posted November 10, 2005 Report Share Posted November 10, 2005 I had my initial consult with the attorney yesterday. Very nice man....seems competant. He said that it was a good case with the recording of the CA I had and the employee verification letter that was faxed over to me at my work. This was hard eveidence and good evidence. He gave me an agreement to look over and to sign if I want to hire him to represent me. I need some opinions and some clarification if I could from all you people that are more experienced,It reads (in part) "I understand that I do not have to pay my attorney any fees unless he recovers money for me in the case. He shall be entitled to the greater of the following amounts:1. 45% of the gross sum recovered, whether through settlement or judgement. The sum includes punitive damages and any benefits conferred upon me, such as debt forgiveness or lien releases. All parts of the settlement shall be combined, except for costs, regardless of whether they are called damages, attorney's fees or some other catagory; or2. my attorney's prevailing hourly rate for the hours he worked on my case ($250/hr currently) or3. the amount the Court awards as attorney's fees.His fee comes from the gross amount he recovers for me. The fee cannot exceed what he recovers for me.I am assuming this means he gets the greater of 1, 2, or 3 and if they "forgive the debt" he gets monies on that amount too.More clarification: "I understand that, if I win, the court may award attorney's fees. This agreement should not provide any basis to deny me or limit court-awarded attorney's fees. Does this mean that the court may award attoney's fees and he will get 45% of the settlement/judgement? I am unclear as to what that paragraph is saying.More clarification: "My attorney has agreed to pay certain expenses in the case. I understand that, at the end of the case, I am responsible for all expenses, and will reimburse my attorney. My attorney has explained various costs I might incur, such as filing fees, service of process, depositions, exhibits, office expenses and all out of pocket expenses reasonably incurred investigating and litigating this case". Please explain this paragraph to me, if anyone can please. Sorry this is so long. This is the first time I have ever done this and I need some opinions on whether this is reasonable. If not, what should I ask to change before I enter into an agreement?I am not looking into making a fortune here. I want the CA "slapped" as she broke the law numerous times. It does not delete the debt and I will try and settle this before I file on the CA. But, I would like to know if this is normal practice for a contingency case or if I will end up owing the attorney more money at the end. He has already told me he expects me to pay the Federal filing fee ($250), serving the document ($50) and the initial consult fee ($75). If I am reading it correctly it seems I will owe him all monies I will receive if in fact I do win. Again, he said it was a strong case and that it would probably not go to court but to a settlement.Any opinions would help me a whole lot Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sizax Posted November 10, 2005 Report Share Posted November 10, 2005 Just my opinion, In reguards to the getting the item removed, isnt that the ultimate goal. I would shoot for that with the settlement, even if they had to take the balance you owe out of the amount of the settlement. That would be less you would have to worry about later. I dont know much about lawyers fees but those seem a bit steep. that is pretty much half of whatever you get. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Equaliser Posted November 11, 2005 Report Share Posted November 11, 2005 This guy could use a little CLE (Continuing Legal Education). To begin with, there is a newly enacted law which allows your attorney to ADD his fees to the winnings, which means you would pay no percentage. Secondly, that 45% is awful steep. Most states I'm aware of only allow 33%. Better call your state bar and find out what the limit is. The rest is is normal legal contract stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tired Posted November 11, 2005 Author Report Share Posted November 11, 2005 Seemed a little steep to me too. But, being new at this, I was not sure.So, is charging fees and taking a percentage a normal thing? Seems he should charge attorney's fees and that would be awarded by the court upon winning and then I would be responsible for his costs which would come out of the winnings also. Is that correct?I have tried the AZ bar assoc website and can't seem to find anything. I have tried calling but keep getting transferred to someone who can't help me. I'll keep trying. I'm not looking to make a lot of money here 8) . It would be nice to have the debt resolved as the CA did make numerous violations and was just a pain in the A$$ and mean . I just don't want to have to owe the attorney a lot of money in the end. Seems like it might be that way. I would also like to recover the filing fees and such I will have to put out.Any more opinions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Equaliser Posted November 11, 2005 Report Share Posted November 11, 2005 Well, I was trying to get you to call the Arizona Bar Website. I think that there are times where a real person is much more informative than a box of circuits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tycin1 Posted November 11, 2005 Report Share Posted November 11, 2005 The attorney that I used got a settlement from a ca for me. He took 45% plus filing fees. I ended up with less than 50%. I was happy though because if I hadn't found this board I would have never collected anything or got the deletion off of my cr. Also, I did not know how to do the case pro se. Good luck to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recovering Attorney Posted November 12, 2005 Report Share Posted November 12, 2005 If I read this correctly, he is The GREATER of 45%, or the court award, or his hourly rate. So, if you get the $1000 statutory award , or a settlement of $1000, he takes 45%. That is, unless he has put in 10-20 hours on your case, which would not be unexpected, and you will owe him 2500+!!! Beleive me, he isn't going to be happy taking $450 if he has to file pleadings, discovery papers, do a deposition or two.Most state courts have standard engagement letters. Who knows if your guy gave you a standard letter? Call the Arizona Trial Lawyers Assn 602-235-9356 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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