attorney tips how to prevent clients displeased with settlement

Do the math for them. Break down all the numbers as best you can, estimate fees, costs, and other expenses as accurately as you can, then get your client hyped (or not). Show the client what the settlement means to them financially by giving them a range, before showing the client your math.

Full Answer

How do I advise clients to my settlement?

What is the most common complaint against lawyers?

How do you deal with nasty opposing counsel?

How do you deal with a litigious person?

How do you know if a lawyer is scamming you?

What do you do when your lawyer lies to you?

What should you not say to a lawyer?

How do you deal with a difficult lawyer?

Why is my attorney not fighting for me?

How do you stop vexatious litigants?

What is litigious behavior?

How do you emotionally survive a lawsuit?

What is settlement in a lawsuit?

A settlement is an agreement reached between the parties to a lawsuit to mutually resolve their differences. It usually involves an exchange of money. There can also be other terms where parties agree to do or refrain from doing something. But forcing clients to settle is not a lawyer’s prerogative. A lawsuit is the client’s property.

Is forcing a client to settle a case a prerogative?

But forcing clients to settle is not a lawyer’s prerogative. A lawsuit is the client’s property. It is the client’s ultimate decision, not the lawyer, whether to settle a case or not. Ronald J. Wronko, Esq., successfully handled a legal malpractice case in Morristown, Morris County, New Jersey, in which it was alleged that an attorney had forced his client to settle on unfavorable terms. The client filed motions to then set aside the settlement to no avail. The lawyer in that case was held accountable for such action.

What is the Connecticut Rule of Professional Conduct?

Connecticut Rule 8.3 (a) states, in pertinent part, that “ [a] lawyer may not condition settlement of a civil dispute involving allegations of improprieties on the part of a lawyer on an agreement that the subject misconduct will not be reported to the appropriate disciplinary authority .” [ See also, Connecticut Informal Ethics Op. 97-13; Connecticut Informal Ethics Op. 95-29.]

What is the case of the Supreme Court in Matter of Wallace?

The court concluded that this conduct violated DR 6-102 (A), [ Id. at 740-41], evidencing “extreme indifference to the intent of the Disciplinary Rules.” “Public confidence in the legal profession would be seriously undermined if we were to permit an attorney to avoid discipline by purchasing the silence of complainants.” [ Id. at 743.] [ See, also, State of Oklahoma ex rel. Oklahoma Bar Association v. Colston, 777 P.2d 920 (Okla. 1989), lawyer committed a “clear violation” of DR 6-102 (A) by offering a client $5,000 in exchange for an agreement not to pursue a grievance.]

What is the District of Columbia Ethics Op. 260?

District of Columbia Ethics Op. 260 (1995) is particularly eloquent in its admonition to lawyers against such arrangements: “Allowing a lawyer to bargain with a client to avoid [disciplinary] procedures would significantly impair the Bar’s ability to regulate its members as well as protect the courts, the legal profession, and the public’s confidence in the integrity and competence of the judicial system, thereby ‘seriously interfer [ing] with the administration of justice.’” [ See also, Maine Ethics Op. 68 (1986); North Carolina Ethics Op. 83 (1989).]

Can a lawyer withdraw disciplinary complaints?

As noted above, no authorities purport to permit lawyers to enter into agreements with clients to forego or withdraw disciplinary complaints as part of a settlement or otherwise. However, there are some cases and ethics opinions that do not base their prohibition on DR 6-102 (A) or Model Rule 1.8 (h), but rather — perhaps in recognition of the fact that those rules relate specifically to exculpation for malpractice, or state the proposition more broadly than in the settlement context —predicate their views on the provisions such as DR 1-102 (A) (5) or the corresponding Model Rule 8.4 (d), which generally bar conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice.

Can a lawyer limit liability to a client?

A lawyer shall not seek, by contract or other means, to limit prospectively the lawyer’s individual liability to a client for malpractice , or, without first advising that person that independent representation is appropriate in connection therewith, to settle a claim for such liability with an unrepresented client or former client.

Is there anything in the Model Rules for Lawyer-client disputes?

There is nothing in this rule that says anything about complaints filed with attorney disciplinary authorities. The rule speaks to liability for malpractice, strongly suggesting that it is aimed at settlements of civil malpractice claims. Nevertheless, courts and ethics committees around the country have interpreted this rule and its counterpart in the Model Rules as applying to settlements of lawyer-client disputes that involve agreements to forbear from filing grievances, or to withdraw grievances that have already been filed.

Does the legal profession have a disciplinary process?

The legal profession has the privilege of policing itself through the attorney disciplinary process. We have not yet had a lay bureaucracy foisted upon us for regulatory purposes, like other professions. We will continue to have this privilege only if we exercise it responsibly. Thus, I have come to the end of my personal journey through this issue, and have accepted as a precept that prohibiting lawyers from resolving disciplinary complaints through the expedient of civil settlement is a small price to pay for maintaining control over the regulation of our profession.

What happens if you pay upfront for a lawyer?

Anytime you pay an upfront fee, you risk the lawyer not doing much or any work.

How much did the attorneys charge for the Ponzi scheme?

Allen Stanford Ponzi scheme recovered only $81 million. According to the AP, the attorneys charged $27 million for three months of shoddy work.

Why do law firms charge high billing rates?

Sometimes, law firms use high billing rates to stick clients with unnecessarily expensive bills for research, secretarial work, and other low-level tasks.

How much money did Sullivan and Cromwell misappropriate?

For example, a lawyer at Sullivan & Cromwell used these techniques and others to misappropriate over $500,000 before being disbarred in 2008, according to the Wall Street Journal. Besides outright false expenses, the lawyer admitted to improperly billing for personal "meals, travel and lodging" and first-class tickets on international flights, for which he paid for coach or business-class tickets, pocketing the difference.

How much did Vick's lawyers charge for his bankruptcy?

Faced with a $2.66 million fee for a bankruptcy case, Vick learned that his lawyers were charging for extensive overhead expenses. As Am Law Daily noted, these included the cost of running air conditioning during the weekend; taxi rides home for employees working late; and $1,200 for plane tickets from New York to Kansas.

Who sued Tuckerbrook Alternative Investments?

Recently, Tuckerbrook Alternative Investments sued Bingham McCutchen, claiming the firm stacked a case with young associates who had “inadequate” experience. “The billing statements reflect that these junior lawyers in essence were enjoying the benefits of on-the-job-training at Tuckerbrook’s expense,” the complaint states, according to Above the Law.

Is it justifiable to spend big bucks on litigation?

Like a sick person, a company facing litigation is willing to spend big bucks to get out of a trouble. It's entirely justifiable, and lawyers are only too happy to oblige, billing clients for every minute worked, and then some.

What to do when an immediate solution is impossible?

Then you can provide them with a definite timeline so that they can expect a resolution at a specific time.

How to turn around a disappointed customer?

It might seem obvious but the key to turning around a disappointed customer is resolving the issue that let them down in the first place. Customers would rather receive a solution than anything else.

Why do customers lose customers?

Considering that the top two reasons for customer loss are poor treatment and failure to solve a problem in a timely manner , according to a survey conducted by Harris Interactive & RightNow, these two pearls of wisdom from yours truly will help steer your ship through the troubled sea of disappointed customers.

What is the commitment to provide a solution?

Providing a solution requires a commitment on your part to perform a specific action for a specific effect at a specific time.

Is it bad to be disappointed with a customer?

Being faced with a disappointed customer feels the same way. It can be a gut-wrenching experience for any business person and it can also be problematic for your business.