Firing Your Personal Injury Attorney
You have the right to fire your personal injury attorney.
That does not mean changing attorneys will be simple or cost you nothing. The attorney you discharge may claim a fee for work already performed, may seek repayment of expenses, and may assert a claim against money eventually recovered for you. But you are not required to remain with an attorney you no longer have confidence in simply because you signed a contingency fee agreement.
The better time to understand these issues is before you hire the attorney. Your fee agreement should explain what happens if the relationship ends—not leave you to discover the answer when something has already gone wrong.
When It May Be Time to Consider a Change
Communication that is not frequent enough from the client's perspective is probably the most common source of frustration between personal injury attorneys and their clients. That does not mean every unanswered phone call justifies firing your attorney. Personal injury claims can move slowly, and there may be long periods when little appears to be happening.
But there is a difference between a slow-moving claim and a lawyer who consistently fails to communicate.
You may have reason for concern if:
● You repeatedly ask for information and receive no meaningful response.
● You do not know which attorney is actually responsible for your claim.
● Important decisions are being made without your involvement.
● Your attorney pressures you to accept a settlement without adequately explaining it.
● The firm appears unwilling or unprepared to file suit when filing suit becomes necessary.
● You discover important fee terms or expenses that were never clearly explained.
● You no longer have confidence in the attorney's capabilities.
Before ending the relationship, ask for a meeting with the attorney handling your claim. State your concerns plainly and give the firm a reasonable opportunity to respond. Sometimes the problem can be fixed. Sometimes the response confirms that it cannot.
What Happens When You Fire the Attorney?
The first attorney ordinarily must stop representing you, take reasonable steps to protect your interests, and provide the papers and property to which you are entitled. If a lawsuit has already been filed, court approval may be required before the attorney can formally withdraw. Pennsylvania’s professional-conduct rules for attorneys recognize that a client may discharge an attorney at any time, with or without cause, although the client may remain responsible for the value of legal services already provided.
The important question is not usually whether you can fire the attorney. It is what the attorney may be paid afterward.
A discharged attorney may claim compensation based on the reasonable value of the work performed before termination. Lawyers sometimes refer to this as a claim in quantum meruit. The attorney may also claim reimbursement for legitimate expenses advanced on your behalf.
That does not mean you automatically owe the first attorney the full contingency percentage stated in the agreement. It also does not mean the attorney gets whatever amount appears on his or her invoice created after the relationship ends. The amount may depend on the agreement, the work completed, the reason for termination, applicable state law, and the eventual outcome of the claim.
Your former attorney may assert a lien against the eventual recovery. If you hire another attorney, the new attorney may have to protect the disputed amount in a trust account until the two attorneys’ fee claims are resolved. Pennsylvania’s rules specifically warn that successor counsel must tell the client in writing that the prior attorney may claim part of the fee and discuss how that claim could affect the new fee agreement.
This is why changing attorneys should not be done casually—but it also should not be treated as something you are powerless to do.
Provisions to Ask for Before You Sign
You control which attorney gets the opportunity to represent you. Anyone competing for that opportunity should be able to explain what happens if the relationship ends.
Ask that the fee agreement address these points clearly:
1. No automatic entitlement to the full contingency fee
The agreement should not say that firing the attorney automatically makes the entire contingency fee immediately due.
A more balanced provision would limit any claim to the reasonable value of services actually performed, subject to applicable law and the amount ultimately recovered.
2. No penalty for changing attorneys
You should not be charged a special termination fee simply because you decide to hire someone else. A lawyer may have a legitimate claim for work performed and expenses incurred. That is different from imposing a financial penalty designed to prevent you from leaving.
3. A detailed accounting of expenses
The agreement should require the firm to provide an itemized statement of all expenses advanced before demanding reimbursement. It should also explain whether expenses are payable immediately upon termination or only from a later recovery.
Remember that attorney fees and the expenses incurred while preparing your claim are different things. You need to understand both.
4. Prompt transfer of your file
Ask for language requiring the firm to transfer your complete file promptly upon written request, including correspondence, medical records, photographs, expert reports, pleadings, discovery, insurance communications, and electronic materials.
A change in attorneys should not create an excuse for your claim to stall.
5. Cooperation with successor counsel
The agreement should require reasonable cooperation with the attorney who takes over the claim. That includes communicating deadlines, transferring records in usable form, and providing enough information for the new attorney to understand what has been done.
6. A defined process for resolving fee disputes
The agreement should explain how a disagreement over the former attorney’s fee will be handled. That might include negotiation, mediation, a bar-association fee dispute program, or another fair process.
Read any mandatory arbitration provision carefully. Arbitration may be efficient, but it can also limit your right to have a dispute decided in court. Do not treat it as meaningless boilerplate.
7. Protection against two full contingency fees
Ask what will happen if another lawyer takes over. Ideally, the agreement should make clear that changing attorneys will not cause two full contingency fees to be deducted from your recovery.
The former and successor attorneys may need to divide the available fee or resolve competing claims between themselves. You should not assume that will happen automatically. Get the answer in writing before signing either agreement.
Ask Before the Relationship Begins
No one hires an attorney expecting to fire that attorney later. But a fee agreement is supposed to address the difficult possibilities, not merely describe what happens when everything goes well.
Ask:
“What would I owe your firm if I decided to change attorneys?”
Then ask the attorney to show you exactly where the answer appears in the agreement.
Asking these questions is not "being difficult". It is being smart. You are evaluating a contract that may determine who receives a substantial portion of your recovery. A lawyer who wants your business should be ready to explain the agreement clearly, answer your questions directly, and give you time to understand the terms before you sign.
The best protection is not assuming that the relationship will never fail. It is making sure the agreement treats you fairly if it does.
General information—not legal advice. Paul’s Guide is not a law firm. This article provides general educational information and may not address every fact, exception, jurisdiction, or change in the law. Legal rights and deadlines vary based on the circumstances and applicable law. Reading this article, by itself, does not create an attorney-client relationship with Paul’s Guide or Paul Zimmerman. For advice about a specific claim, promptly consult a lawyer licensed in the appropriate jurisdiction.