16 Points About Florida Contingency Fees for Palm Beach Wills, Trusts & Estates

If you have been dis-inherited or if you are fighting a will contest or are objecting to a Florida will in a Palm Beach Probate, we all know that probate litigation is expensive in Florida.   Does a contingency fee Florida probate lawyer make sense?   If you got dis-inherited from a $8 Million Jupiter Island revocable trust, are you ready, and can you afford, to bring a probate lawsuit?   Here are 16 top things to consider about an estate contingency fee in Florida, whether you are involved in a Palm Beach probate, a joint bank account lawsuit, or any trust disputes.

1. Is a probate contingency fee case in Florida the keys to the probate courthouse’s door?  Well, to get answers to why you were disinherited or why you don’t get a distribution from the probate, you often have to file a trust lawsuit, open a probate or start taking action in the Palm Beach probate.  That costs money.
2. After the Florida probate complaint is filed, that’s just the begining.  Discovery needs to be taken so you can learn the facts, build your case and start adding up  your probate damages. There are very specific parts to the discovery process which can help you get answers and build your tortuous interference with an inheritance case.  You don’t just run to trial.  Prepare, prepare prepare and know the facts !
3. A contingency fee for a probate case in Florida means that you, the client, are willing to give up or pay your probate litigation law firm a percentage of what they recover for you.  If anything. If your West Palm Beach probate litigation law firm does not obtain a recovery for you, then they get nothing. The recovery may be by trial, on appeal, as a result of tough negotiations and settlement, or through a mediated probate settlement agreement after mediation of your estate lawsuit. So, ask yourself:  are you ready to give up a chunk of your inheritance with an estate lawyer contingency fee Florida?
4. Well, most law firms don’t seem to take probate cases on a contigency fee. Some probate firms may prohibit estate lawyers from taking cases on a contingency fee. Some may not take probate contingency fee cases because it’s not part of their business model.
5. Consider:  Can you afford a retainer of $20,000 and then pay your invoice of thousands of dollars each and every month?  If so, you may not want a contingency fee for your estate lawsuit.  Why? Because if you are successful in whole or in part, with your Florida probate litigation, the Florida Probate Code and the Florida Trust Code have laws which may, no guarantee, may help you recover, or get reimbursed, some or all of the money which you spend in probate  litigation attorneys fees.  Why pay a trust litigation law firm a contingency fee in Florida if you don’t have to?
6. A probate contingency fee typically does not require a client to pay a retainer or aninitial fee at the beginning of your probate contingency fee case although you are still responsible for costs. And you don’t pay each month; you pay at the end, if there is a recovery for you. No probate inheritance recovery; no attor neys fees. Although you still must pay costs.
7. So, one big advantage of a Palm Beach Gardens probate contingency fee is that you don’t go out of pocket thousands and thousands of dollars paying probate litigators their legal fees.  Although be sure to get an idea or estimate on what your costs will be.
8. One disadvantage to paying a Florida contingency fee for your estate or trust lawsuit is that you have to share a big %  of what your Florida trust litigation law firm recovers for you.
9. Do the math !   Consider & evaluate.  How important is this estate lawsuit which you want to bring? Are you willing to invest thousands of dollars in your Florida trust case and lawsuit? Are you willing to pay invoices from your estate law firm each and every month? Are you willing to put your money where your mouth is?  If not, then does a Florida probate contingency fee make sense? That’s a personal, mathematical and financial question only YOU can answer. But get some guidance from a good Palm Beach estate litigation law firm that has taken some cases on a contingency fee before. After all, you are giving up a big chunk of your potential probate lawsuit damage recovery and you should understand what that means and how much you may have to pay.
10. Consider interviewing as many estate litigation law firms in Florida as you can. When you find the one that’s right for you, then discuss money and your probate case.
11. Understand what a contingency fee for your probate lawsuit means. If you win, or if your estate lawyers get a recovery for you, you pay them a fixed percentage, typically, of the recovery. So, you are giving up some “upside” of your potential recovery to your probate litigation law firm.
12. No guarantee of winning your estate case.   Florida Contingency fees for probate lawsuits are not a guarantee of success. There is a real chance of losing. Ask any EXPERIENCED West Palm Beach probate litigator who actually goes to court and tries probate cases and has estate trials: not just hearings and easy cases. Don’t think or believe that just because some probate lawyer in Boca Raton or Boynton Beach agreed to take your estate lawsuit on a contingency that you have a good case.
13. Know the risk !   Is an estate litigator willing to take the risk of YOUR case and make itTHEIR risk? Many probate lawyers don’t want to take your risk and and make it THEIR RISK. Most Palm Beach estate & trust lawyers won’t take your trust lawsuit unless you pay them a big retainer and you ALSO pay their monthly invoices on time, each and every month. Wow ! That’s a lot of out of pocket money: are you ready to spend your money? So, you have to ask yourself: does a probate contingency fee for my Palm Beach Lawsuit make sense to me and my lawyer?
14. Consider those estate law firms with the financial ability to not get paid until you get paid. How financially strong is your probate litigation law firm? Do they have the financial strength and flexibility to wait to get paid until the end of your lawsuit?
15. Confidence !  No fear ! Consider looking for a probate law firm that is not afraid of a contingency fee, and who can make it part of their probate practice model or their business or firm model.  Evaluate those probate litigators Palm Beach, or throughout Florida, who have the confidence to go into probate court and try a will contest case in any probate court in Florida.
16. Evaluate and find a tough litigator who likes a good legal “fight” and is confident with the estate and trust law and with trying a case in front of a probate court judge. The truth is that many really good probate litigators in Florida like what they do. And they like a good legal “fight” even when the facts may not be perfect, or the best, and when the law is open to interpretation: in other words when the Florida probate, estate or trust law is not clearly on your side. Find a tough fighter who likes a good tough probate litigation case because she or he enjoys what they do and this area of the law. Good luck.