Bokeelia, FL Personal Injury Law Firms & Lawyers

Actually, you potentially bring a claim against both the driver and the owner depending on the circumstances. Really the factor here is what insurance coverage is available. You should seek out an attorney who can help you to maximize your claim and make sure your interests are protected.

What you are referring to is the settlement release. That is a separate document from what you lawyer is required to provide you, which is an accident closing statement. That document must set out the total settlement; the attorney fees and an itemization of all costs and all other deduction from the settlement, including medical bill reimbursements, health liens repayments, etc.; and finally what your net settlement proceeds will be. The case  will still be settled the  the agreed upon amount, but until you sign the itemized closing statement the lawyer cannot distribute the settlement proceeds. As to your direct question: when settling a case lawyers can often give you a very good, if not exact idea of what your net proceeds will be. However, at times, because of high medical bills and health liens that need to be reduced it is much harder for a lawyer to give a reasonably accurate estimate. In some cases the  providers and lien holders will not, or cannot agree to reduce bills until they know they case settled. In that situation it is based on your level of trust of the lawyer and need to resolve the case even with this uncertainly. Every law firm and situation is different, but when this happens I will explain to my client exactly why we are  in this situation and for almost all cases I make it clear my firm will not take a larger fee then the client's net proceeds*, so my clients understand I am the same situation as they are; meaning it is in my interest as well to get the bills and liens reduced as much as possible, or I may end up having to reduce my fee. (* All firms have different policies on fee reductions and there is no legal requirement to do so). Bottom line is you need to speak with your lawyer about exactly what is going on;  whether he/she can put together the actual closing statement now, or at least give you a reasonable estimate what your recovery will be. Important: If there is a net recovery below which you would rather go to trial regardless of risk, then do not  settle the case until the lawyer can give you sufficient assurance. You really need to discuss all this with the lawyer, including what happens if the case  does not settle.

Go down and have a face-to-face meeting with your attorney and ask him (or her) to explain to you exactly how his (or her) fee went from $5400 to $14,000. Ask them if they have a problem with you consulting with another workers' comp attorney to discuss this fee arrangement with that attorney. Or, try calling the assistant for the worker's comp judge and ask if the judge could look at the matter.