Need legal advice

H

Horn6721

Hook'em
Just need opinion for a friend. He is a great engineer but lost in the legal world.
He is suing an HOA for blocking the sale of a townhome. They told him he didn't have permits for things done before he bought the property. and for which permits were not needed at the time.
The HOA advised potential buyers the property was in dispute.

My friend is back in Texas but retained a Calif lawyer and for over 3 years tried to get a resolution, even a trial. He has paid the attorney 120k. Now with less than a month to scheduled trial the attorney informed my friend he has filed with a judge to quit , saying he will discuss it "in chambers".

Is there any recourse for my friend? To be out 120k and years of providing every document asked , something seems not right for an average citizen ..

Any general thoughts or advice would be appreciated.
 
I think I would burn the townhome down before spending a $ on a lawyer. (I am not a lawyer).
 
Is the case pending in California or Texas? And just to be clear, the attorney is attempting to withdraw, correct?
 
According to my friend the attorney told him this week that he does not have a case.
Again I know I am just asking for an opinion but to a person who did NOT stay at a Holiday Inn Express it seems this dude milked him for money and now that the thing is set for trial wants to bail.
I don't know much but 120k in fees?? and NOW you want to quit>

And thanks Mr D
it is bewildering to most of us but it just doesn't seem right.
 
Horn6721 said:
According to my friend the attorney told him this week that he does not have a case.
Again I know I am just asking for an opinion but to a person who did NOT stay at a Holiday Inn Express it seems this dude milked him for money and now that the thing is set for trial wants to bail.
I don't know much but 120k in fees?? and NOW you want to quit>

And thanks Mr D
it is bewildering to most of us but it just doesn't seem right.
Click to expand...

Of course, I always worked on a contingent fee. Some people think that's sleazy, but this kind of scenario illustrates why it's not. If my client's case fell apart, I took it in the shorts. The client never had to pay for legal work that didn't ultimately help him.

Nevertheless, I can't really judge this lawyer's conduct without more information. What specifically made the case fall apart? Was this information known at the time the lawyer was retained, or was it discovered later? Obviously it isn't ethical for a lawyer to sign up a client when he knows the client has no case but pretends he does, bill him for legal services, and then drop the case. However, a lawyer who isn't hired on a contingent fee doesn't have to forfeit his fee just because a case falls apart any more than a doctor has to forfeit his fee just because his treatment is unsuccessful.

And of course, he needs to figure out if the fee is reasonable. That means somebody needs to examine the file and the bills.

If he can't get straight answers from the lawyer, I'd go to the state bar. It will have mechanisms in place to get to the bottom of it.
 
thank you.
I do not know the details and don't want to.If you ask him the time he tells you how to make a watch AND 3 ways they could be made better.

But it seemed to me the lawyer dude strung him along and then bails less than a month before trial.I do know the HOA's insurance company is now involved.

I will pass this good advice. Thanks again
BTW Contingency seems to me the fairest method since it is based on your performance. I am guessing you were successful??
 
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