Well, it’s not quite a death in the family but…
Pulled that quote from this piece at law.com about law firms suing former clients for back fees. ABA Journal had an erely similar article on the same day…and now I’m posting about it. Interesting that one of the law firm’s suing former client allegedly was owed $400,000 in fees.
Who stays in a case where there’s that large of an unpaid bill?
I’m still for the most part following this “collection policy” with my firm. Personally I have never sued a client for fees (with a caveat to come) nor seen it done at the two smallish firms I worked at prior to my current set-up. However, as someone who practices a good amount in cases covered by the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, there is a specific section of that Act (508) which allows a former attorney to bring a fee petition against a former client (typically you bring a fee petition immediately after you withdraw). I have used this mechanism and will continue to do so…you get a judgment without the hassle of filing a separate suit.
