I've been trying to resolve this on my own but I'm stuck.
lawyer charging for work not done. I've been dealing with this for about 4 weeks now and the situation isn't improving.
I have already consulted briefly with a lawyer but the other party is not cooperating.
Do I have a strong case? What should my next steps be?
Have you tried reaching out to your state's legal aid society? They sometimes have free resources or mediation services fr fr.
Hired a lawyer for an insurance bad faith claim. Paid a $5,000 retainer. Six months later, almost nothing has happened — no demand letter sent, no discovery, and he's billed through the entire retainer on "research" and "file review." When I asked for an itemized accounting, the entries were vague: "Review file - 2.5 hours" repeated multiple times.
Is this normal? Can I get my money back?
This is potentially an ethics violation. Attorneys have obligations under their state's Rules of Professional Conduct regarding:
Steps: (1) Request a detailed accounting in writing, (2) if unsatisfied, you can terminate the representation at any time — the attorney must refund any unearned portion of the retainer, (3) file a complaint with your state bar's disciplinary authority, (4) many state bars have a fee arbitration program that's free or low-cost for clients.
You are ALWAYS entitled to your file. If the attorney refuses to return it, that's an additional ethics violation.
The merger/integration clause is the most dangerous clause in any contract. It says the written contract is the ENTIRE agreement, wiping out any verbal promises. Always get verbal agreements in writing before signing.
I just learned that indemnification clauses can be mutual or one-sided. Always push for mutual indemnification — if they want you to indemnify them, they should indemnify you too. It's basic fairness.