What You Need To Know When Switching Lawyers
The topic for today is: I'm thinking about switching lawyers. What do I need to know?
This is a delicate topic. It's actually a real serious breach of etiquette for a lawyer to steal another client's case. Now that's the terminology that the lawyer who loses the case uses is that, somebody's stealing his or her client. But the law in Illinois and in most states, virtually all states, is that the client must have a free right to have any attorney they want.
What does that mean? That means that at any point in a representation, the first day, the 700th day, or anywhere in between, if you really decide that you can't work with a lawyer anymore, you can switch lawyers.The lawyer can't torpedo your case. They can't disclose bad information to you about anybody, nothing like that. They can't do anything.
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Splitting Up Attorney's Fee
But they are entitled to money at the end of the case. So that is something you need to think about. How does that work? Now 99.9 percent of the time you get rid of a lawyer you, hire a new one at the end of the case your new lawyer has to work out a deal with the old lawyer in splitting up the attorney's fees. Usually, the attorney's fees are whatever you agreed to with the second lawyer and then the two lawyers have to split them up.
A Law Firm With Not So Good Reputation
I had a guy who called me who had been represented for a really really long time. Years and years and years in the case. It was very mature, there were multiple surgeries, there was a written offer that I think was really low. The lawyer who represented them by reputation, my opinion only, it wasn't a law firm that does a very good job, based on reputation, based on things I've heard from other lawyers who also know what they're doing. It's not a law firm with a stellar reputation. The story that this guy told me about the communications and things of that nature, I believe them. Because I've heard them over and over from lots of law firms.
I basically explained to this guy, the later into the case you are the harder it is to find a new lawyer. If the case is set for trial, most good lawyers are very hesitant to take over a case like that. The reason is, you take over a case like that, the new lawyer has no control over what the former lawyer might have done or not done, because there are disclosure deadlines. You have to get certain work done by certain dates or the court bars the evidence.
The Older The Case, The Harder To Find A New Lawyer
The longer and the older the case is, the harder it is to find a new lawyer. The first thing that goes through my head with a very mature case like that when somebody wants to switch is, "did the old lawyer screw things up? , and "am I stepping into a swamp here where I'm not going to be able to fix it because it's too late?". So keep that in mind.
Next thing is, "Am I going to be the second lawyer on the case, or am I going to be the fourth or fifth lawyer on the case?". Because I will tell you, this is advice they give in dating I think I heard it on a radio show when I was younger on a radio program where they said, "if all of your ex-girlfriends are jerks and rotten, they all have one boyfriend in common".
In other words, if you've had four or five lawyers and none of them were good enough. You're mad at all of them and they did a terrible job and they didn't do what you wanted them to and all the rest of it. Then you've gone through four lawyers or three lawyers or five lawyers. Maybe you need to re calibrate. Maybe you should re calibrate your expectations of the case and what a lawyer can do for you.
From One Bad Lawyer To Another
Then the other thing to think about is, it is possible. I have talked to people who had a bad lawyer, and then another bad lawyer, and another bad lawyer. Because I, by reputation I know those lawyers and I know how the law firms operate and I know what the client's expectations were with a real law firm and a real trial lawyer.
For whatever reason, they went from one bad TV lawyer, to a neighborhood lawyer who does nothing but sign up cases and settle them low, doesn't work on the cases, to another guy with a with a not great reputation. Now, I will tell you, most lawyers are awesome, most lawyers are amazing. A lot of lawyers surprise me how awesome they are and the great outcomes they get for their clients. But as in any profession, some are better than others and some people are in this business for the wrong reason in my opinion.
You Need An Attorney Who Is Engaged And Involved
They're not in it to really help clients, they're not in it to educate the clients, support the client and help manage. They don't even talk to the clients a lot of them. They only want their secretary or their case manager or their law clerk to talk to the client the whole time. That's just crazy. You deserve more than that at a minimum. You need an attorney who's really engaged with his or her cases. I mean I rely on my staff a lot to talk to people and call people but when push comes to shove, I'll drop what I'm doing and pick up the phone if it's a critical situation.
Don't Fire A Lawyer Just Because They Gave A Bad News
My point is, don't just fire your lawyer because your lawyer gave you bad news. Or you thought it was a million dollar case and your lawyer tells you there's some real challenges. Don't fire your lawyer because he didn't call you back once, or it took him too long to call you back one time or you mainly have to talk to a secretary.
That's how most offices run. If I had to speak on the phone with everyone who calls my office everyday, I would get no legal work done. That is literally true. I would be on the phone all day everyday with clients non-stop or with insurance adjusters, other attorneys, doctors and other lawyers all the time. So we have to have staff help.
Time To Consider Hiring A New One
But if it's at a point where you feel like your lawyer lied to you, you feel like your lawyer and his staff will not talk to you and will not explain things to you. If you have a serious disagreement about the case, if you feel like nothing's happening in your case and no one will explain anything to you, in other words if your relationship with the lawyer or if the trust you had in that lawyer is gone, then it might be time to consider hiring a new one.
An Independent Decision By The Client
But keep in mind that the older the case and the more former lawyers on the case, the harder it's going to be for you to find a lawyer. I usually try and talk people out of it and I call the old lawyer if the client allows me to see if I can smooth things over. But if they never call the client or they do that and they call the client and yell and scream at them this sort of thing, well what am I supposed to do? Let the client's case go to hell? or tell the client they have to stay with an attorney that hates them evidently?
I'm not going to do that. If it's an independent decision by the client that they've decided to move on no matter what and the relationship is broken, I'll take the case. So keep that in mind.
I hope this information helps you. It's not a fun topic, but maybe it's a relief to you if you need to know that.
