Results 1 to 3 of 3
  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jul 2018
    Posts
    1

    Default What Lawyer Fees Do You Owe When You File a Case in Forma Pauperis

    My question involves civil rights in the State of: Arkansas.

    My question is simple .. Does my attorney get the 46% of my settlement or am I right to understand that filing it pro we and informa porpres while awaiting trail and not getting the judge to appoint counsel. And doing everything myself until the last of the interrogatries and a year of pro se on my first fed.civil. case . found a attorney who charges 46% and has done no new filing of the original case. Meaning it was the same civil case #. Is she entitiled to the 46% because it clearly states in the USC 43 1983 FORM PAPERWORK THE ATTORNEYS CAN ONLY REQUEST 24%. UNDER THE GUIDELINES IS SHE ABLE TO GET any more than the % allowed by the Fed.rule civ. For Procidure?MY CASE IS SET TO SETTLE.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Posts
    19,901

    Default Re: I Filed My Own Usc42 1983 Form Informa Propais and Pro Se

    In forma pauperis only gets you out of having to pay the various court fees on your filing. It doesn't get you an attorney. As EJ points out, there's not going to be any court appointed attorney in a civil case. Such is provided federally only in cases where "life and liberty" are at stake. 43 USC 1983 is the section for civil action on civil rights issues.

    What your attorney gets is a matter of negotiation between you and your attorney (in advance). If you have an attorney who's willing to take your case on a contingent fee (i.e., he takes a percentage of the results of the case. 33-40% is not atypical.

    The 1983 action provides for you to recover fees attorney fees to reimburse YOU for your private legal costs. This is not predecated on your pauperis status. I'm not sure where the 24% is coming from, but that may be a cap on legal fees as a percentage of the award (note the fees awarded will be over and above your damage award). So if you sign with an attorney that binds them to 46%, you will have to pay anything over the awarded fees out of yoru damage amount.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Posts
    8,238

    Default Re: I Filed My Own Usc42 1983 Form Informa Propais and Pro Se

    Quote Quoting flyingron
    View Post
    In forma pauperis only gets you out of having to pay the various court fees on your filing. It doesn't get you an attorney. As EJ points out, there's not going to be any court appointed attorney in a civil case. Such is provided federally only in cases where "life and liberty" are at stake.
    That's not quite correct. The statute that provides the rules for proceeding in forma pauperis in federal court is 28 U.S.C. § 1915. That statute expressly provides for the possibility of the court appointing counsel for the indigent person. “The court may request an attorney to represent any person unable to afford counsel.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). The statute permits appointment of counsel; it does not require it. There is no right to counsel in civil cases. The statute itself sets no requirement that “life and liberty” be at stake for the court to be able appoint counsel. The appointment is generally at the discretion of the court. And indeed the courts have appointed counsel in a variety of cases in which life and liberty were not at stake. The standard applied is found in the decisions of the federal courts of appeal and each circuit’s case law on the matter is different, though the typical basic standard most often seen is that a district court generally only need appoint counsel in exceptional or unsusual circumstances. That appears to be the basic standard in the 8th Circuit, the Circuit in which Arkansas is located. “Moreover, only in the presence of unusual circumstances, should counsel be appointed for the plaintiff in such cases.” Rhodes v. Houston, 258 F. Supp. 546, 578 (D. Neb. 1966), aff'd, 418 F.2d 1309 (8th Cir. 1969).

    The Eighth circuit provided a little more guidance on when to appoint counsel in a civil case a few years later that involved a claim by the plaintiff of fraudulent conversion of his car by his former attorney. The plaintiff was, at the time, in prison. The court held the district court should have appointed counsel, saying:

    In the overall interests of the proper administration of justice we think this case presents circumstances requiring appointment of counsel. The complaint states a fraudulent conversion of plaintiff's property. The answer admits the sale of the automobile but alleges mitigating defenses. Plaintiff is admittedly an indigent. For obvious reasons he alone cannot investigate the case or hope to obtain evidence to prove his allegations. The court will be aided by appearance of counsel at all proceedings. These circumstances fully justify the appointment of counsel to represent plaintiff and the failure to do so here would amount to an abuse of discretion.

    Peterson v. Nadler, 452 F.2d 754, 757–58 (8th Cir. 1971), abrogated on other grounds by Mallard v. U.S. Dist. Court for S. Dist. of Iowa, 490 U.S. 296, 109 S. Ct. 1814, 104 L. Ed. 2d 318 (1989). Neither life nor liberity was at issue in that case. However, the fact that the plaintiff was in prison was a factor in appointing counsel since that fact prevented him being able to himself investigate the case or obtain needed evidence.

    So while it is certainly true that it is very uncommon to get an attorney appointed in civil case in federal court, it is possible and in a variety of cases, not just where life or liberty are stake.

    1. Sponsored Links
       

Similar Threads

  1. Working With a Lawyer: How to Get an Inmate's Case File from His Lawyer
    By lawfacts in forum Criminal Defense Lawyers
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 01-23-2017, 08:24 PM
  2. Legal Fees: Can a Lawyer Require Additional Fees to Release My File
    By maho711 in forum Legal Practice
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 02-03-2014, 05:22 PM
  3. Legal Fees: Fees for a Lawyer Who Quit Part Way Through the Case
    By bookwuurm in forum Legal Practice
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 01-18-2013, 01:00 PM
  4. Condo & Co-Op Boards and Associations: Filing a Forma Pauperis Lawsuit with SSI
    By Apaulo52 in forum Real Estate Ownership and Title
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 01-20-2012, 12:16 PM
  5. Legal Malpractice: Lawyer Didn't File Case, Claiming File Was Stolen
    By shey007 in forum Malpractice Law
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 02-10-2007, 06:25 AM
 
 
Sponsored Links

Legal Help, Information and Resources