"To the extent that respondents and their amici ask us to eliminate the
contingency fee multiplier in all but the 'rare' and 'exceptional' case where attorney's fees are awarded, we decline to adopt the reasoning of the United States Supreme Court....
In addition to capping monetary awards for pain and suffering and other noneconomic damages at $250,000, the measure would limit
contingency fees to 33.3 percent for lawyers suing doctors, clinics, hospitals and nursing homes.
Plaintiff's attorneys taking cases on a
contingency fee basis generally use one of two kinds of contractual fee agreements: net fee arrangements or gross fee contracts.
If lawyers were permitted to enter into
contingency fee agreements, clients would only have access to legal advice from a source with a direct financial interest in the litigation.
Second and more troubling, studies of
contingency fee lawyers have never revealed any significant risk premium.
THE STATUS OF
CONTINGENCY FEE LIMITATIONS IN THE LEGISLATURES AND AT THE BALLOT BOX
In Quanstrom the Florida Supreme Court classified three kinds of cases in which a
contingency fee multiplier might be appropriate:
(1) Their use in the United States generates great controversy, and while their use is restricted in some states, further calls for restrictions on
contingency fee contracts are often heard.
Clearly, a
contingency fee lease auditing firm will generally not waste time on a claim that is not legitimate because it is only compensated for successful results.
Brickman has convinced me that there is little competition in
contingency fee markets, and that such markets could be much more competitive.
She previously had signed a
contingency fee agreement granting her attorney one-half of all collections.
Two judges ruled there was no evidence that the solicitors had entered into illicit
contingency fee agreements, enabling impoverished tenants to bring private prosecutions over poor housing conditions.