unethical attorney ?

Question

I hired LAWYER 4YRS AGO WHO I FEEL IS ACTING UNETHICAL REFUSING TO RETURN MY PHONE CALLS ABOUT MY CASE. ACTUALLY I HAD TWO CASES WORKERS COMP HE LOST AND NOW WANTS TO BE PAID.WHEN HE WAS HIRED HE TOLD ME NO FEE UNLESS WE WON.I DIDNOT RECIEVE A COPY OF CONTRACT. I ASKED HIS PRESENT & FORMERS CLIENTS THAT I KNEW OF(3) IF THEY RECIEVED THE SAME INFO FROM HIM & IF THEY EVER RECIEVED A COPY OF THEIR CONTACT WITH HIM. NONE EVER DID. NOW HE IS DEMANDING MONEY FROM ME FROM THE CASE HE LOST.I SENT HIM A CERTIFIED LETTER ASKING HIM WHY THIS CHANGED AFTER 4YRS & WHY HE REFUSED TO ANSWER MY CALLS, E-MAILS ECT...
HIS RESPONSE IS PAY UP FOR MY TIME I PUT INTO THE CASE OR I AM NOT REPRESTING YOU ANYMORE FOR YOUR 2ND PENDING CASE WHICH I FEEL HE IS JUST SITTING ON DOING NOTHING.WHAT CAN I DO? AM I SCREWED? I FEEL HE MISREPRESTED HIMSELF TO ME&HIS PAST,PRESENT CLIENTS THAT I SPOKE WITH.WHAT CAN I DO NOW? THANKS FOR ANY HELP

Answer 1

First of all, I've been there and the most likely result will be nothing. Sorry, but that's the truth.

You should contact the state bar assoc., they should have a group to investigate attorneys.

You need to get a list of former clients together to send the bar. Good Luck

Answer 2

Okay, first of all, the lawyer is a fool. 90 percent or more of attorney malpractice claims start with the attorney demanding to be paid. It doesn't matter if he deserves the money or not, when people get a letter demanding money from anybody, whether a lawyer, a mortgage lender, or a doctor, they tend to want to sue.

Second, it's entirely possible that you owe the money. He may not be claiming fees, he may be asking for his out of pocket expenses for filing, copies, stenographers, etc. Most "no win no pay" agreements do contain a stipulation that if you don't win, you still pay the attorney's out of pocket expenses. It's one thing to say he won't MAKE any money, but there's no justice in YOUR case costing HIM money. You're being a dick if you think there is.

Third, if he is only claiming costs, he's a fool for not having you pay that up front. Being a fool doesn't mean he's not entitled to the money.

Fourth, on the question of him not representing you in the second case if you don't pay; He's not your slave. If you don't want to pay him for the first, go get yourself another fool for the second one. He doesn't owe you what you already got, let alone more. Guess what? When you go to another lawyer and tell him who to ask for the file....lawyers talk. Nobody wants a deadbeat for a client. So, yes, you're probably screwed, unless he already has a rep for being a bad lawyer.

Why not talk to him like an adult and TELL him you don't feel like paying for a lost case, and LISTEN to him explain why you lost, and he should also explain what you're being asked to pay for.

Bottom line is that no sensible lawyer wants to fight for justice for someone that tries to screw them.

Answer 3

attorneys are the lowest form of life on this planet.I had a malpractice case involving my wife's gallbladder surgery, and my scumbag lawyer told me 2 weeks before my trial, that i would have to pay all of my settlement money back to my insurance company. We won a million dollar settlement, but we only received 20,000 dollars. he got 265,000 and the insurance got the rest. My wife is dieing from the surgery that she had, and I owe thousands in medical bills that i will never be able to pay. This is the only time that i have used a lawyer, and i got burned. I hate all of them.They only have care about how much money, that they can get out of your misery.

Answer 4

I know you can contact the Bar Association but, I think there are some differences from state to state. I do know that in Tennessee you contact the Tennessee Board of Professional Conduct. They are probably called something else in other states.

You can also call the district court in your area and ask them who you would call.

Answer 5

Contact the Bar Association of the state you live in to file a complaint, and in the meantime, seek other representation for your other cases. It sounds like your attorney has gotten himself strapped for cash.

Answer 6

My suggestion to you is to in the present day touch the community FBI workplace and ask if there's a attainable fraud component of your hire and if this legal expert has been suspect in comparable transactions. honestly, I honestly have continually got here upon it extremely confusing to get one lawyer to truly criticize the ethics of yet another lawyer.

Answer 7

Contact your state bar and they will look into it for you.