2nd Opinion May Yield Good Advice
Medical patients frequently seek a second opinion from a doctor before surgery. Should legal clients seek a second opinion from a lawyer before filing a lawsuit, or at any other time?
Second opinions are not generally considered common in the legal profession. Medical insurance usually pays for the second consultation by a doctor, and some insurance policies now require second opinions before surgery. However, except for some limited prepaid legal-insurance plans, most legal fees are paid directly by the client.
And a second opinion can be expensive.
In some respects, second opinions are common among lawyers; they just are not called second opinions.
Most large law firms have separate, specialized departments. So if you retain a large firm to handle your lawsuit, the trial lawyer who handles your suit may consult a tax lawyer in the firm about tax consequences of a proposed settlement.
To get the full benefit of such in-firm consultations, which sound very much like second opinions, you should, as an informed client, know which lawyers in the firm are involved in your case and how each of them analyzes the legal issues. Frequently, even lawyers in the same firm disagree about strategies or proposed remedies, and you should get the full benefit of everyone’s insight. Especially at the rates the large firms charge.
Large companies have their own form of built-in second opinions. They employ in-house counsel, lawyers who work as full-time employees of the company. The in-house lawyers usually supervise the work of the outside experts hired on specific cases and offer their own second opinions to company executives.
For the more typical personal consumer of legal services, checking with a second lawyer may be a good idea in certain limited circumstances. That’s the suggestion of Louis M. Brown, emeritus professor of law at USC.
If your lawyer has recommended that you accept a settlement offer, especially if the lawyer is working for a contingency fee, or has told you to appeal a losing decision by the trial judge, you might want to spend a little extra to double-check the legal advice you’ve received.
Winnable Case
Before you ever file a lawsuit, you may want to see if a second lawyer agrees that you have a winnable case. Or if you have a dispute with your lawyer about the fees being charged, another lawyer’s quick consultation may help.
There are also some specialized areas, such as tax, immigration or patent law, in which second-guessing by an experienced specialist will assist your lawyer. This is especially true if you are involved in a lawsuit and your lawyer does not have day-to-day experience in that specific field.
If you do seek a second opinion, be sure to clearly define what it is you’re after. Place a cap on the amount of time the second lawyer may spend on the matter, so he understands you are only willing to spend a set amount of money.
You’ll also need the cooperation of your existing lawyer. It’s too expensive in most cases to have the second lawyer review the entire file, but you might have your first lawyer spend an hour with the second lawyer, summarize the case, explain his advice, and then see if the second lawyer agrees.
It may take some doing to get your lawyer’s cooperation, because most lawyers are not accustomed to having a client hire a second lawyer to second-guess their work or their recommendations. Some lawyers may refuse to cooperate out of fear that the second lawyer will steal the client’s business. Other lawyers may be offended that you don’t accept their advice without question.
Lawyers are paid to question, so why shouldn’t clients do a little hard questioning themselves? On occasion, that may even mean getting a second opinion.
Attorney Jeffrey S. Klein, The Times’ senior staff counsel, cannot answer mail personally but will respond in this column to questions of general interest about the law. Do not telephone. Write to Jeffrey S. Klein, Legal View, The Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles 90053.
