Pretty much every day we get called by someone who has already filed a case with an Illinois workers’ compensation attorney, but is not happy with their representation. For some of those callers, they just need to understand what is really going on with their case. Others have really bad attorneys and should get a new law firm in their corner before it is too late.
A common question that comes up is, “If I fire my lawyer, will have to pay them anything?” The answer is generally no, but we would be doing you a disservice if we did not explain how it works in reality.
The first thing to know is that lawyer fees in Illinois workers’ compensation claims can never exceed 20% of what you recover. So if you fire one lawyer and hire a new one, it is up to those two firms to agree how to split that 20%. It’s possible they will each take 10%. It is possible that the old firm was not on the case very long and they will get nothing or just a little bit. But whatever happens, you do not have to personally pay them anything and the lawyer fee that you provide in the end will not increase at all.
Illinois work comp law is very clear on this issue. Attorney fees can not exceed 20%. Period. Getting a new firm will cost you nothing.
There are some firms, one notorious one in Chicago in particular, that try to imply to their clients that if they switch firms, they will have to pay an exit fee. That is very illegal and not enforceable even if you agreed to it. These are terrible work injury firms whose clients do not like the bad level of service. Rather than do a good for their clients, they try to scare them in to thinking that is just how it is and they can not leave.
There is no law against hiring a new work comp attorney if you do not think the one you have is doing a good job for you or just is not the right fit.
In some cases, an attorney has a rightful and clear claim to all or part of that 20 percent attorney fee. That happens when a settlement offer has been made. For example, if your lawyer secures a $50,000 settlement offer on your case, they are entitled to $10,000. If you fire them and either get a new law firm or try to settle the case on your own, they still are entitled to that $10,000 (although they usually have to file a petition for attorney fees).
Because of this, getting a new law firm in your corner can be a challenge if a settlement offer has been made. A new firm will only get involved if they think the case is worth significantly more than what has been offered to you. Otherwise we would be doing a ton of work so the other firm can get paid. In other words, if you do not think that you have a great attorney, you should switch before a settlement offer gets made.
You still do not owe them anything when you fire them or switch firms, but they have the ability to get paid when the case is resolved. You can not fire them and then try to take the whole settlement for yourself.
My recommendation in almost every case is to see if you can work things out with your lawyer. But if you can not or they are doing terrible things like yelling at you, not calling you back or not doing anything to help you win your claim, then you should definitely switch firms before it is too late.
We have an Illinois wide network of experienced, aggressive work injury lawyers who care about their clients. If you would like a free, confidential case review, please get in touch any time at 312-346-5578.
