Can I have the new attorney cover the previous Attorney Fees prior to distributing New Attorney fees from The settlement?

Technically, the former lawyer's fee entitlement is your obligation, almost always*, the new lawyer will voluntarily take the fee (not the costs of course) from his/her portion of the recovery, particularly if they want to get the case.  This is something you should have discussed with the new lawyer when you hired him/her. I rarely take cases from other lawyers unless I feel they are really messing up the case, but if I do, I always discuss with potential clients, up front, whether the former lawyer is going to claim a lien for fees.  If so, I need to look at what that lawyer's potential fee may be, relative the the case value. Unfortunately, it may not be possible to take over a case if the other lawyer's fee entitlement will not leave enough over for me. In that case, I tell the client I cant take the case, or I may offer them the option, that anything over X percent of my fee portion needs to come from their share of the proceeds. Unfortunately, if you did not have an understanding with new lawyer, up front, could be within his rights to take his full fee? What does the retainer contract say? * Each case is different (as per my examples above) and every lawyer has a different way of doing business. I can only speak for my firm and lawyers I know.