Hearing Set on Attorney Discipline
The American Bar Assn. is holding a hearing in downtown Los Angeles Saturday to find out what the public thinks about attorney discipline.
Lawyers have taken a lot of heat in the past couple of years. One of the biggest complaints from consumers has been the way in which lawyers are--or are not--disciplined when they do something incompetent or unethical.
In California, only the Supreme Court can order the disbarment of a licensed attorney. The court makes its decisions based on the recommendations of the State Bar of California, which investigates complaints against lawyers.
Some critics have complained that lawyers should not judge other lawyers, and the State Bar has been under pressure to improve its disciplinary procedures. Recently, for example, a State Bar Court was created. Staffed by full-time professionals, it hears disciplinary and regulatory issues involving lawyers.
So if you’ve had a bad experience with a lawyer, Saturday will be your chance to complain publicly and ask for changes in the disciplinary process.
But if you have never had a bad experience with a lawyer, or even if you’ve never had any experience with a lawyer, there are always things you can do to improve the chances that any future lawyer-client experience will be a valuable one--for both of you.
First, select an experienced, trustworthy, decent, hard-working, ethical, reasonable, intelligent attorney. Sound easy? Sure it does. Actually, there are plenty of them. That first decision, if done correctly, could save you a lot of headaches. I’ve written in the past about how to find a good lawyer, so I won’t belabor the issue this week.
Next, understand the relationship with your lawyer. And get it in writing.
“Lawyers sell legal services,” explains HALT, a Washington legal reform group, in its manual “Using a Lawyer.” “It is your money, your property and your rights that are at stake. It is your responsibility to choose a lawyer carefully (and) to keep yourself informed about your case. As with any purchase, you would have the right to expect value for your dollar and to hold the seller to the terms of the purchase contract.”
The most common disputes between a lawyer and a client involve fees. What do you do if your fee is too high? The State Bar publishes a pamphlet by that very title. (For a free copy, write State Bar Pamphlets, 555 Franklin St., San Francisco, Calif. 94102.) One thing you can do is take your dispute to arbitration. Most local county bar associations sponsor special fee arbitration panels to decide disputes.
It is also best to be an informed client and understand clearly the type of fee that the lawyer is charging. There are basically three types of fee structures: hourly, flat, and contingent.
The first one is simply an amount billed per hour of work performed. Not too different from a plumber. A flat fee is usually charged for relatively routine matters such as a simple will, an uncontested divorce, or a bankruptcy filing. Make sure you understand precisely what is included in the price. (Legal-service plans usually charge a basic fee and include certain designated services, but charge for further consultation.)
The contingency fee can be the most complicated and is probably the most common fee consumers encounter, because it is often used in personal-injury lawsuits. You pay the fee out of what you win. If you win nothing, you pay nothing. If you win something, you pay an agreed-upon percentage. Some lawyers offer a sliding scale and charge a lower fee if they settle the case out of court.
If you decide to hire a lawyer and are considering a contingency arrangement, estimate your costs. If the lawyer would wind up receiving substantially more than he would with an hourly rate, try to negotiate a lower percentage.
Of course, before you even talk to a lawyer, there are certain things you can do to save yourself some money. HALT, the legal reform group, advises that you first contact the other person involved or the insurance company to see how much you will be offered directly, without a lawyer.
Then ask several lawyers to estimate how much you might win, and how many hours it will take. Figure out how much you’ll take home after paying the lawyer, and if the offer without a lawyer is better, settle on your own.
Sounds like good advice to me. And, by the way, if you want to attend the ABA hearings Saturday, they will be held from 1-4 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, 711 S. Hope St., Los Angeles.
