Q: Can I fire my lawyer and negotiate on my own ?
I was in a car accident where the other party admitted fault ( I was rear ended at a high speed ).
I hired a lawyer but he is not trustworthy, doesn't respond to my questions in a nice way, and hides all my medical bills from me. He acts like I am stupid for asking questions about my case. I'm done with him.
So I have significant injuries and so does my passenger..we both hired the same lawyer. He doesn't deserve 30 percent of what I settle for and I refuse to give it to him. At this point I have estimated we have roughly over 10k in medical bills , but he has not sent them to me. He will not let us chose our own doctor. And the doctors are phony, they have no idea what they are doing. I am in a lot of pain with my arm and they do not seem to care.
How can I fire my lawyer and send my own demand letter to the car insurance company? Also, since we were both injured in the same wreck , do we need two separate demand letters or one?
A:
You’re entitled to terminate your lawyer at any time. However, the lawyer will likely be entitled to a lien for his attorney’s fee.
You can negotiate your own settlement. However, your healthcare providers and/or health insurer have a right to be paid back out of your settlement funds. In fact, the auto insurance companies likely won’t settle your case unless they’re permitted to pay your medical providers and health insurer directly. You can negotiate with the medical providers and health insurers yourself as well.
Lastly, if you have underinsured motorist coverage then there is a process for making a no fault claim on your own auto insurance. This process can be tricky.
It is typically best to have a lawyer who handles these processes for you. You are entitled to change lawyers at any time if you’re unhappy with your current representation.
Tim Akpinar and Mitchell G. Lattof Jr agree with this answer
A: Clients can always dismiss their attorneys, and vice versa. However, as my colleague points out, there could be grounds for a lien, depending on the amount of work performed by an outgoing attorney. Good luck
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
