Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Illinois

Legal Fee Dispute

Question:

I've recently received a substantial settlement in a lawsuit. However, a previous attorney whom I fired is refusing to sign the Settlement Release, and is demanding that he first be paid $11,000 which he feels I still owe him (even though he was fired). He's lucky I didn't personally sue him for malpractice. My current attorney who was successfully able to win my case, wants to file a ''Motion to Adjudicate'' his absurd fees. However, I'm not sure that this would be best for me, or if I should instead personally file a complaint against this lawyer with the ARDC and Committee for Fee Arbitration.

Therefore, my question is ...

If a client should have his current attorney file a Motion to Adjudicate the fees of a previous attorney, and the the motion is denied by the judge for whatever reason, can that client still proceed as an atlernative thereafter, to file a formal complaint with the ARDC and the Fee Arbitration Committee, in a second attempt to expunge theat lawyers bogus fees? Or, if the judge in the Adjudication Hearing denies our motion to adjudicate the fees, is that a final decision, with no other alternatives to pursue thereafter?

Thanks You


Asked on 5/05/07, 6:58 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Noelle Ansley Noelle Ansley

Re: Legal Fee Dispute

Why do you feel your first lawyer's fees aren't justified? Is it because you were unhappy with his work? Just because you didn't care for the service, doesn't mean you don't have to pay him/her anything. If you went to a restaurant and you didn't care for your meal, you would understand that the restaurant would nonetheless expect payment from you for your dinner and you would undoubtedly pay. So why do you now feel that you don't have to pay your first attorney? I don't know what sort of complaint you'd have against this attorney that you could make to the ARDC, but if it's simply based on fees, the ARDC investigation is separate from any court proceeding to adjudicate the fees, so one does not affect the other. And if you want to hash out this fee matter, you can do it in either court or by some method of alternative dispute resolution. Either way, you've got a lawyer or lawyers looking at the bills of another lawyer to decide if they're reasonable. If they are, you will have to pay him for his services.

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Answered on 5/07/07, 12:36 pm


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