Legal Question in Sexual Harassment in New York

Lawyer prepared EEOC and Notice of Claim without my consent.

My contract with the attorney clearly states that she would negotiate a settlement, but in the event the negotiations fell through, she would then, and only then, take the necessary steps to file in court. She failed to negotiate. When she repeatedly ignored my attempts at communication with her, I did my own negotiating with my employer to a mutually beneficial agreement. I then attempted to get my $3,500 retainer back. After four months of asking for an itemization and finally threatening to go to the NY State Bar Association if she did not send me an itemization, she finally gave me the itemization. To my horror, I found she had spent a great deal of time filling out an EEOC and a Notice of Claim only two weeks after signing the retainer agreement. I never gave her permission to do this. I signed an agreement clearly stating that she was to negotiate. Clearly, she had no intention of negotiating if she had the filing papers prepared two and a half months in advance of the deadline. I had no intentions of going to court. I hired her to negotiate. Am I responsible to pay for work I never authorized? I am going to fee arbitration, and as a non-attorney I am terrified, since I do not know what my rights are. Please advise.


Asked on 12/07/07, 2:26 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Mark S. Moroknek Kelly & Curtis, PLLC.

Re: Lawyer prepared EEOC and Notice of Claim without my consent.

There is nothing to be terrified about. Its an informal setting, and the arbitrators will listen to you. As to the right and wrong of your situation, it is almost always necessary to file with the EEOC or Division of Human Rights to commence or preserve a client's claim. It must usually be done in a short time period and its almost impossible to fault an attorney for doing this.

The attorney is responsible for these decisions, not the client.

The itemization is your best chance to get something back; if there are too many long telephone calls, for instance, or something like that.

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Answered on 12/07/07, 3:20 pm


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