$$$ inducement by my lawyer to make me agree to settle- like a bribe!

[terilclark]

Jurisdiction

California

So during a mediated settlement that had worn me down for hours, my atty offered 10K off her bill when she saw I was super-resistant to signing a low offer--and never reviewed it with me first...is that legal? She then raced out the door before I'd clearly said "YES I agree" and told the other party we were in agreement and done. Is any of that legal or ethical?
I was in shock and went home in tears - til the next day when I demanded to know a) how I wound up with tax liability after specifically requiring NONE....and b) since she'd decided on her own to accept payments (!!????) why were there no late charges or INTEREST, even???? Shouldn't I be able to report her to the bar? She won't tell me my legal options and has been pretty bad all along....she just wanted this to be done. It had been a contingency case that she started charging me for by the hour midway thru. And I've spent the last year working to research/mine databases for my defense for literally 10-12 hours a day, 6-7 days a week, with no social life and sold my house to pay for this case. It's not right!


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[Highwayman]

Chances are unless you signed a settlement agreement you are not "done".

 

[army judge]

Shouldn't I be able to report her to the bar?

Anyone can make a complaint against a lawyer.

This is where you start:

The State Bar of California

 

[Highwayman]

You haven't even provided any information about what this is all about.

 

[adjusterjack]

You haven't even provided any information about what this is all about.

Nor on the other site where the question was posted.

 

[adjusterjack]

Chances are unless you signed a settlement agreement you are not "done".

Not sure about that. Oral instructions to an attorney regarding a settlement agreement could be binding.

 

[Michael Wechsler]

I'm not sure the case is actually settled without remedy. Tell your attorney you're not accepting or signing anything until what you want has been addressed, by email if need be which may also serve as proof that you've made such a request.

 

[zddoodah]

during a mediated settlement that had worn me down for hours, my atty offered 10K off her bill when she saw I was super-resistant to signing a low offer--and never reviewed it with me first...is that legal?

Yes, it Is legal (and not at all uncommon) for your attorney to offer to discount her fees in order to induce you to agree to a particular settlement.

She then raced out the door before I'd clearly said "YES I agree" and told the other party we were in agreement and done. Is any of that legal or ethical?

It's not illegal, but it's also not very good representation. A memo of understanding (if not a full blown settlement agreement) should always be drafted to memorialize a settlement reached at mediation. Without it, whatever was supposedly agreed probably isn't binding (and no, "[o]ral instructions to an attorney regarding a settlement agreement" are not binding.

I demanded to know a) how I wound up with tax liability after specifically requiring NONE....and b) since she'd decided on her own to accept payments (!!????) why were there no late charges or INTEREST, even?

No way to comment on either of these things without knowing anything about the lawsuit. What were you suing for?

Shouldn't I be able to report her to the bar?

Of course you can.

 

[ElleMD]

Tax liability is a matter of tax law. Your desire to not have to pay taxes on a settlement is irrelevant and not something any party could agree to waive, just like you can't sell something subject to sales tax and decide to just skip it for this transaction. It is not your decision to make.

Why would payments automatically be subject to interest or late charges? If the agreement is to pay in installments (incredibly common), you negotiate what is owed and when. I've never seen one that tacks on some arbitrary percentage as interest as it is a settlement, not a loan. For the record, I negotiate/approve multiple settlements a week.

This attorney is working on contingency or was, meaning they don't get paid until/unless you do. If they have been on your case for a year, that means they have gone a year with no pay. If at some point the attorney said they were no longer willing to take it on contingency and were going to need to charge an hourly rate if you wanted to keep pursuing this, that tells me your case was not as strong as you seem to think that it is. You were welcome to decline her offer and search for another legal representative if you were unhappy with her assessment of your case. You agreed to the new terms.

 

[zddoodah]

Tax liability is a matter of tax law. Your desire to not have to pay taxes on a settlement is irrelevant and not something any party could agree to waive, just like you can't sell something subject to sales tax and decide to just skip it for this transaction. It is not your decision to make.

This is partly true but not entirely. Depending on the nature of the lawsuit, it may very well be possible (and legal) to structure a settlement to minimize or avoid tax liability.

 

[ElleMD]

It is possible if the type of settlement is permitted to be exempt from taxes per the tax code, but if the law says it is taxed, it is taxed no matter what the parties to the settlement would like to do. As there are absolutely no details about the nature of the case, let alone what type of settlement was being attempted, it is impossible to say if a settlement that was not subject to tax was possible.