Per a recent report from Bankrate finds, majority of Americans stated that they would not be able to afford a $1,000 emergency expense. Only 44% of Americans said they would be able to pay for unexpected expenses with savings. How does this effect the average Americans’ access to legal representation? As we know very well, lawyers are not cheap. Based off these statistics, it could be assumed that most Americans do not have the spare cash to put down a retainer fee, or to be able to pay an attorney in an hourly basis. With that being said, it would seem the best option for the modern law firm would be to charge their clients on a contingency basis. A contingency fee is an agreement between the lawyer and client that the lawyer will not be paid any fees unless the case is won. An agreement on the percentage taken by the attorney is decided upon at the beginning of representation. Although there are limitations with this, for example contingency fees cannot be used for criminal or family cases, most cases do have the opportunity to charge this way. What are your thoughts? Are contingency fees the best option for the average American? Can attorneys take advantage of Americans this way? What percentage of winnings is fair for an attorney to take?
Contingency fees are a great way to help lower income people afford a lawyer. However, family law cases are half of the civil docket nationwide. As you noted, there are ethical prohibitions against the use of contingency fees in family law cases. Same for criminal cases. That means only a fairly small percentage of cases in the court system are eligible for contingent fees. They are often the flashiest cases we hear the most about, but switching to contingency fees alone will not solve the access to justice problem for most people.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I think it depends on the case, how much work is required on it, and the financial situation of the clients. Also, it is the type of case where there is going to be a recovery and there is a winning, or is the lawyer simply preparing and filing documents for them? I like it when firms offer both hourly and contingency and pick which one seems best given the situation.
ReplyDeleteVery insightful post! In regard to contingency fees, I think that in some circumstances, like Professor Bassett said, it is very helpful to those that are in lower income families and may not be able to afford to pay an attorney hourly. At the same time, it is difficult because an attorney may not take a claim that is iffy just because they want assurances that they will be getting paid.
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