What can I do if my attorney said he'll take my case for free and now asks for 40% fee?

All fee agreements in which a contingency fee will be charged, in your case 40%, must be in writing and must specify how much, usually a percentage, your attorney shall receive as a fee. The fee agreement should specify whether the fee is taken from the gross amount collected or from the net. If the fee is based on the net amount, the fee agreement should specify what items are deducted from the gross recovery to determine the net amount. Costs and expenses ("legal fees"), depending on the fee agreement, may be taken in addition to an attorney fee based on the gross amount recovered or may be an item that reduces the attorney fees (so the fee is based on a net recovery). Did you sign a written retainer or similar agreement with the attorney? If so and it says your attorney is entitled to 40% plus his out-of-pocket expenses then your options are: discharge the attorney; try to re-negotiate the fee; or accept the agreement as it is. If you did not sign a written agreement your attorney cannot collect 40% of any settlement, verdict or judgment. At that point you and the attorney can either try to agree on a fee percentage or you can look for a new attorney. As to what are "normal rates" there are not necessarily any "normal rates." The rates an attorney charges depends on a number of factors, including, but not limited to: the fee customarily charged in the locality for similar legal services; the time limitations imposed by the client or by the circumstances; the nature and length of the professional relationship with the client; and the experience, reputation, and ability of the lawyer or lawyers performing the services. A 40% contingency fee is not necessarily "crazy" especially if the likelihood of your winning is small or based on other factors.

No attorney in their right mind will take a case for free. You obviously misunderstood. What the lawyer probably said was that he/she would take it on a contingency. That means that the lawyer gets a percentage if you win a percentage of zero is always zero.

If an attorney takes a case on a contingency basis, he must have a negotiated fee agreement signed both by the client and him. Without such an agreement, the attorney I'd limited to receiving a reasonable fee dependant on, among other things, the time spent on the case. Since your question implies what your attorney intends to do, I am assuming he has done no more than an initial case review with perhaps some investigation. I would find a new attorney....one who will stick to his original agreement.

Any fee over 33% in personal injury cases is illegal and unethical in Michigan. This is set by the Michigan Supreme Court. You should contact an attorney knowledgeable in this area, such as myself, as soon as possible to evaluate your claim.

You should look to your fee agreement that you signed at the beginning of your case.

Do you have a retainer agreement? If so, see what it says. If you don't, then he can't demand a fee. But, if he hasn't yet filed papers, he can decide he doesn't want to go forward. If he has filed papers, he might be able to withdraw, but he'll have to get court permission. Typical rate is one-third, after expenses are taken out.

To answer your question, what can you do? You can terminate you attorney's representation and try to find another attorney. 40% plus costs is a normal fee for complex cases where liability is disputed. These fees are often charged in employment litigation, products liability. Medical Malpractice, and suits alleging government misconduct. It would be extremely unusual to find n attorney to do any such a case for free. I suspect that the attorney agreed to for no charge investigate, evaluate and determine whether it is a case he would accept , and you misunderstood this. For an attorney to evaluate your case for free is a valuable endeavor as many attorneys charge for this, only to advise the client that they cannot accept the case. If you are not satisfied with the 40% fee, perhaps you should fire your attorney, and look for another attorney and let them know that you are no seeking a contingency fee, but that you would like to pay an hourly rate, to be paid even if you lose. Expect the attorney to ask for an up front deposit, and to want you to deposit additional sums from time to time so that your deposits are ahead of the hourly billing. I have found that most of my clients prefer the 40% contingency fee. Keep in mind that the attorney is taking all of the risk if the case is lost, and you have zero at risk.

If so, show that to him and ask him to stand by his word. But, any attorney can withdraw at any time, just like you can discharge your attorney at any time. Is he a family friend was he helping you just to try and settle but now is taking it to court.

You probably should fire your current lawyer and hire a replacement lawyer. The two lawyers can work out whether or not they split any fees. Standard fees range from 25% -34% if a case settles prior to filing a lawsuit. After filing a lawsuit, it will increase 5-10%. If there is an appeal, it will increase another 5-10%.

You may have misunderstood your attorney's remarks and the nature of a contingent fee agreement. Return to your attorney to discuss this with him. Either enter into a written agreement with your attorney, or hire another. Insist on a written engagement agreement with your attorney.

My guess is you probably misunderstood the lawyer. He probably told you he would take your case and there would be no charge unless there was a recovery. That is called a "contingency basis". As far as the normal % rates for contingency cases, that varies depending on the type of case. Normal contingency rates vary and are negotiable. Good luck.

You have to think about what he really said. I will bet you that he said that he would take the case with no out of pocket from you. That is not free, it just means that he will advance the costs. In Idaho, 40% of the award is fairly standard. However, if you think your attorney lied to you, file a complaint with the Idaho State Bar.

What is crazy is that he would ever say that he would do it for free. If you signed an agreement with him which promised him a 40% contingent fee out of gross recovery then he is entitled to that amount. If there is no such written agreement and you believe you can do better elsewhere, then terminate his services and seek other counsel. Know, however, that 40% is completely reasonable for contingency fee cases these days and some lawyers charge even more.