Legal Question in Personal Injury in Wisconsin

Re: auto accident settlement

Yes, it is legal and ethical to include the recovered medical bills in the computation of the contingent fee. In a contested liability case, you would not receive anything without the lawyer getting the settlement or verdict. Medical bills constitute one element of the damages you recovered. The fee contract you signed probably allowed the lawyer to charge the contingent fee on all sums recovered. The terms of the attorney fee contract may have been different if you had tried to avoid an attorney fee on the medical bills. Absent that, I think you will have to pay the fee.

Regarding "office fees", I do not understand what those are.

Auto Accident Settlement, Legal Fees on Medical Expense

Auto Accident Settlement, Legal Fees on Medical Expense

Written fee agreements are supposed to control what attorneys can charge in auto accident (personal injury) accidents. On newer cases, the ethics board actually requires them. If you have a question about the distribution in your case, review your fee agreement first, then call your attorney. Errors can certainly occur in computing the final payouts under the written contract, and most attorneys are happy to correct errors once you point them out. Most fee agreements are based upon gross amounts recovered, which technically includes subrogated insurer payments for medical expense. My office, however, will usually succeed in negotiating a reduction in the medical insurer's payout sufficient to compensate the client for fees he or she is paying on that portion of the gross amount attributable to subrogated medical bill payments. This means that the insurance company rather than the client is effectively paying their own collection costs via this "discount." Most other personal injury attorneys will do the same. In some circumstances, attorneys will discount the percentage fee to an even greater extent, depending upon the outcome and the amount of work which went into obtaining it. I do not know anything about your particular attorney's "office expense" charges and therefore cannot comment on that. However, if can supply further detail in a private email, I would be happy to assist. It is standard for attorneys to charge the client for all expenses which require he or she to pay any third party vendor, such as a medical records services, court reporters or to the clerk of courts. Other inside office expenses are negotiable--again, many attorneys will waive them depending upon the facts.