Can my attorney agree on a settlement without my consent, and then threaten to quit if I want to proceed to trial?

The attorney cannot accept an offer without your permission. He can, however, quit at any time if the Judge grants a motion to withdraw as your attorney. I suggest that you get another attorney.

The decision to accept or reject a settlement is solely the decision of the client. However, if a client persists in doing something which the lawyer thinks is illegal or imprudent, the lawyer may withdraw. (If the matter is before a court or other tribunal, he needs the permission of the judge or tribunal.)

An attorney can always withdraw from a case unless his doing so would eminently and adversely affect your rights. An attorney can not settle a case without his client's consent. If you never gave him such consent verbally or in writing (such as in your fee agreement) then he can not settle I suggest you get another lawyer. This should not cost you any more in attorney fees than what you agreed to with your first attorney. The two attorneys will split the total fee on a basis worked out between themselves. This should not be any concern of yours. Note that if they get in a dispute, their dispute cannot, by ethical rules, impede you getting your share. As to the costs, you will have to pay those regardless of who your attorney is. You are entitled to get, from your first attorney, a full and accurate accounting of all costs he paid on your behalf. Have your new attorney review this accounting statement for reasonableness.

We would be happy to provide you with a free consultation if you call my office at either of the numbers listed below. If my office accepts your case, there is no fee charged unless we are able to obtain a settlement for you.

Your attorney can't accept a settlement without your consent; that's why he's advising you to consent to the settlement and telling you what he'll do if you don't follow his advice.? If you won't follow his advice you can't force him to keep working for you. ? I know nothing about your particular case or your particular lawyer, but it's usually a bad idea to change horses in the middle of the stream.

The attorney cannot agree on a settlement without your consent. That being said, you may have authorized him and if he acted on that authority you are bound by it. Or, if you did not give authority nor consent to the settlement, he can tell you to get another lawyer, and yes you will owe him the money for expert witnesses and the fee he would have earned from the settlement so far. If you get a new lawyer, he/she can reimburse the first one, though the existence of the outstanding expenses and attorney's lien will be a hinderance to retaining new counsel. But, your current attorney will probably need court approval to withdraw, so if you can't find a new lawyer and he can't get permission to quit, the two of you may be stuck with each other. All that being said, listen to your lawyer about why he thinks this is a good deal. You retained him for a reason, maybe he knows what constitutes an acceptable settlement better than you do.

The attorney cannot force you to accept the settlement. Tell him you will report him to the State Bar.

It is your case, not your attorneys. An attorney can give advice/recommendations (which a client usually will take - otherwise why did you hire the attorney?), but the client can agree with the advice or not. Your attorney can ask the court to allow him to withdraw due to a breakdown in the attorney/client relationship and/or an economic hardship presented by the case; but the same has to be by motion with notice to you. Of course, if the case is far along, the Judge may not allow withdrawal and/or may only give you a short time to find new counsel (which could be hard if the case is complex and/or there are any "problems" with liability or damages). In short, you have a right to reject any settlement that you do not agree with and have the right to go to Trial. Whether your view of the case is realistic is another matter, but you could try and get a 2nd opinion from another medical malpractice lawyer and that may allow you to better determine whether your attorney is giving you good or bad advice to settle.

He cannot accept the settlement, but he can quit. However, despite what you want, this may be a fair offer. Still, you should contact the Idaho State Bar and (1) ask for a referral for a new attorney, and (2) talk with the ethics section about filing a complaint.

This is a rather complex question and I am not sure that all of the facts are here. Generally an attorney must communicate all offers to you that are made and cannot accept the offer without your consent. As yours is a medical negligence case and does require expert witness testimony it is not unusual that there will be substantial expenses with expert witness fees. You can ask for an accounting of those fees. Assuming that the offer has not been accepted and there is sufficient time for you to seek new counsel, the attorney can withdraw from the case and place a lien on the case for any recovery you subsequently receive for his or her expenses and his fees.