Obviously, anyone can “fire” their lawyer. There are a couple of issues that generally have to be dealt with when a lawyer who is working on a contingency fee basis is fired in Florida. If the lawyer is being fired “for cause”, then legally there are no lawyer fees that would be due and owing. “An example of a “for cause” firing would be if the lawyer was disbarred and thus could not continue on the case. “For cause” could also be other reasons as well. If there is no reason for the firing and the client simply chooses to switch lawyers, then the client would have to pay the lawyer quantum merit fees when the case resolves and that quantum merit fee is generally based on the time the lawyer worked on the case. The point is that if the lawyer has done a lot of work, then, in addition to paying the new lawyer the contingency fee, the client would have to pay a large fee to the fired lawyer. Conversely, if the lawyer has done little work, then the amount owed may be a small amount. Thus, it is easier to fire a lawyer earlier in the case, for that reason.
If you have any questions regarding an injury case, please call Drucker Law Offices at 561-483-9199 in the principal office in Boca Raton, 954-755-2120 in the satellite Coral Springs office, 305-981-1561 at the satellite Miami office, 561-265-1976 at the Boynton Beach office, 561-967-3840 at the satellite Lake Worth office or 561-686-7070 at the West Palm Beach satellite office.
Of course, every case is unique and has to be judged based on the specific facts of the case. The advice in this blog is intended to be general in nature and should not to be construed as specific advice for a case, as a slight difference in the facts could ultimately change the result. Also, this blog is, as the web site suggests, based on Florida law and the laws of any other states or another country could vary significantly from Florida.
