What is the name of your state? Georgia
I signed a contract with my attorney for contingent fees of 25% of weekly income benefits of $275.00 of workers' compensation. We ahd to go to court and the Administrative Law judge awarded my attorney his contract for 400 weeks and only 400 weeks unless sooner terminated. Two years ago I was going to fire my attorney because I felt he had not fulfilled his contract responsiblilities but after going to his office and confronting him with this I felt that he would do a better job of respresenting me and getting me the services that the judge had authorized . This did not happen and just this past week we went to a mediation to settle my case. I brought up the fact prior to our going to the mediation that he would not be entitled to a 25% fee for the settlement as that was not a part of our contract and that he was only entitled to 400 weeks of weekly income benefits at most. He stated that the judgement no longer pertained to just 400 weeks as I had been awarded a catastophic designation. I did not understand what he meant as I hadn't signed anything regarding the catastrophic designation nor a lump sum settlement. We did have an attorney mediation a selttlement for me and had come to an agreement but now my attorney states he is entitled to 25% of this lump sum. I don't feel that he has earned a fee of 25% as he did not get me another psychologist when I reguested that he help me change doctors due to the doctor acting inappropriately. I had report this to my pain management doctor and he had referred several other psychologist and/or psychitrists but my attorney never took the case back to court when workers' compensation kept refusing to accept any of these doctors. There were other incidents that he did not act in my best interest as well. I feel that he has sat back and collected his fee every week and had not done anything outside of the initial court case getting my benefits restored and that was in July 1999. There was even at one time for a period of 7 months when I did not hear a thing from my attorney and called him to make sure he was still representing me. I need your advise as to what to do as they are waiting for me to sign this settlement but they have incorporated his 25% fee into this settlement lump sum agreement.
I signed a contract with my attorney for contingent fees of 25% of weekly income benefits of $275.00 of workers' compensation. We ahd to go to court and the Administrative Law judge awarded my attorney his contract for 400 weeks and only 400 weeks unless sooner terminated. Two years ago I was going to fire my attorney because I felt he had not fulfilled his contract responsiblilities but after going to his office and confronting him with this I felt that he would do a better job of respresenting me and getting me the services that the judge had authorized . This did not happen and just this past week we went to a mediation to settle my case. I brought up the fact prior to our going to the mediation that he would not be entitled to a 25% fee for the settlement as that was not a part of our contract and that he was only entitled to 400 weeks of weekly income benefits at most. He stated that the judgement no longer pertained to just 400 weeks as I had been awarded a catastophic designation. I did not understand what he meant as I hadn't signed anything regarding the catastrophic designation nor a lump sum settlement. We did have an attorney mediation a selttlement for me and had come to an agreement but now my attorney states he is entitled to 25% of this lump sum. I don't feel that he has earned a fee of 25% as he did not get me another psychologist when I reguested that he help me change doctors due to the doctor acting inappropriately. I had report this to my pain management doctor and he had referred several other psychologist and/or psychitrists but my attorney never took the case back to court when workers' compensation kept refusing to accept any of these doctors. There were other incidents that he did not act in my best interest as well. I feel that he has sat back and collected his fee every week and had not done anything outside of the initial court case getting my benefits restored and that was in July 1999. There was even at one time for a period of 7 months when I did not hear a thing from my attorney and called him to make sure he was still representing me. I need your advise as to what to do as they are waiting for me to sign this settlement but they have incorporated his 25% fee into this settlement lump sum agreement.