Can I Fire My Lawyer After Settlement?

The short, honest answer

Firing a lawyer is always allowed. What firing cannot do is undo a finished settlement. If you signed a release and the case settled, the claim against the at-fault party is generally over, no matter who your lawyer is afterward.

We say this plainly because people often reach us hoping a new lawyer can get a better number after the papers are signed. Beverly Law cannot take those cases, and we will not suggest otherwise. If you are not sure what you signed, we can look at the document and tell you what it is.

Many people who search this question, though, are at an earlier stage than they think. The difference between three moments matters: agreeing to an offer, signing a release, and waiting for the money.

Agreeing to an offer is different from signing a release

Agreeing to an offer. You told your lawyer to accept, or your lawyer told the insurer you accept. No release has been signed yet. This stage can still be binding. In a California lawsuit, a written settlement signed by the parties or their attorneys can be enforced by the court under Code of Civil Procedure § 664.6. In Texas, Rule 11 enforces agreements in a pending suit that are written, signed and filed, or made in open court. Washington’s Civil Rule 2A gives effect to disputed agreements made on the record or in a signed writing. Before a lawsuit is filed, an accepted offer can also form a contract under general contract law.

So a “yes” may already count, even without a signed release. If you agreed and now regret it, get advice quickly. Whether the agreement is binding depends on the facts, and that is a question for a lawyer who has read the documents.

Signing a release. A release is the document where you give up your claim in exchange for the payment. California law says a release extinguishes the obligation it covers, under Civil Code § 1541. In Texas and Washington, a signed release generally has the same effect. Once it is signed and the case has settled, the claim is over. That is the point at which we cannot help with the injury claim.

Waiting on disbursement. The case is settled, the release is signed, and the check has gone into your lawyer’s trust account, but you have not been paid. Firing the lawyer will not change the settlement amount. The rules below still protect your money.

If you agreed but have not signed anything yet

Move quickly. Ask your lawyer in writing whether the acceptance was sent to the insurer, whether it was in writing, and whether any document was filed with the court. Ask for copies.

If nothing binding has happened, you still have time to get a second opinion before signing. If something binding has happened, a new lawyer may not be able to change it, and you should know that before spending energy on a switch.

If the case is still open and you decide to switch, switching to Beverly Law does not raise your fee. Any fee owed to your former lawyer for the work they did comes out of our fee, not on top of it. Case costs the old firm advanced are normally repaid from the recovery, like costs on any case, and you owe nothing if there is no recovery. Our page on firing your lawyer before settlement covers the rest.

When the settlement money is slow to arrive

Some delay after settlement is normal. The insurer has to issue the check, the check has to clear the trust account, and medical liens have to be resolved. Liens from health insurers, hospitals or government programs can take weeks or months to finalize. A lawyer is not stalling just because liens are still open.

What you are entitled to is information and prompt payment of money that is not in dispute. Each state’s trust account rules say so:

What to do if your lawyer won’t release the settlement

Start in writing. Ask for a written settlement statement showing the gross amount, attorney fee, each case cost, each lien and the amount held for each lien, and your net. Ask for the date the check cleared and the date you will be paid. Give a deadline of about ten business days.

If part of the money is held because of a lien, ask who the lienholder is, what was requested, and what the lawyer is doing to resolve it. The undisputed part should not wait on the disputed part.

If the dispute is over the lawyer’s fee, each state has a path:

• California: clients can request fee arbitration under Business and Professions Code § 6201. The State Bar explains how on its fee dispute page.
• Texas: the State Bar has a page on resolving fee disagreements, and its Client-Attorney Assistance Program at (800) 932-1900 can help with communication problems.
• Washington: the WSBA does not handle fee disputes itself and refers people to dispute resolution centers.

If you believe settlement money has been mishandled, you can also file a complaint with the state bar.

Where Beverly Law can and cannot help

We can review a case that has not settled, including one with an offer on the table, and we can switch it to our firm. We can look at a document and tell you whether it is a release. If your injury case is still open and you are unhappy with how it is going, our guide to switching lawyers walks through the process.

We cannot reopen a settled claim, undo a signed release, or take over a case only to collect money from a lawyer’s trust account. For a trust account problem, the steps above and the state bar are the right places to start. If you are unsure which stage you are in, contact us for a free, honest answer in English or Spanish.

Sources

1. Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 664.6 (text read on california.public.law)
2. Texas Rules of Civil Procedure (Rules 10, 11 and 253) (txcourts.gov, PDF)
3. Wash. Superior Court Civil Rule 2A
4. Cal. Civ. Code § 1541
5. California Rules of Professional Conduct (State Bar of California, PDF)
6. Tex. Disciplinary R. Prof. Conduct 1.15 (safekeeping property)
7. Wash. RPC 1.15A
8. Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 6201 (mandatory fee arbitration)
9. State Bar of California: Resolve a fee dispute
10. State Bar of Texas: Resolving fee disagreements
11. State Bar of Texas Client-Attorney Assistance Program (CAAP)
12. Washington State Bar Association: Concerns about a lawyer