Florida Business Lawsuits on a Contingency

When does a Florida business lawsuit on a contingency make sense? Florida shareholders and business owners, listen up! If you are the partner or a member of a Florida LLC, and are now involved in a business lawsuit in Florida, can you afford it? Here’s what Florida partners and former shareholders need to know. A contingency fee for your Florida business lawsuit may or may not make sense.

Serious Business Lawsuit Lawyers

Ask any business owner who has been forced out by their Florida partners, and he or she will tell you that you need to hire a tough litigator. What does this mean?

1. You want to find a lawyer who is experienced. You should consider how long a law firm has been in business, and how many years of experience the Florida attorneys at the firm have.
2. Ask the business lawyers you are interviewing how often they go to court. Let’s consider Florida probate law as an example. Many probate lawyers do not go to court. Instead, they write wills and trusts. However, probate litigators, like the attorneys at Pankauski Hauser, do NOT write estate plans. Instead, our attorneys fight hard in court for our clients. Trial experience is imperative if you are in need of someone to represent you in a Florida business dispute.
3. Look for a Florida business attorney that is aggressive, yet professional. You want someone who will work hard and fight hard for yo, both inside and outside of the courtroom. You want a West Palm Beach lawyer or Orlando attorney who moves your case along, keeps you informed, answers your questions promptly, and is powerful in the courtroom. However, you also want to make sure that your business attorney is professional and ethical.
4. You may want to consider hiring a Florida business law firm that also knows how to handle appeals. What if you win and the other side decides to appeal? At Pankauski Hauser, one of the law partners, Robert Hauser, has been named a Board Certified Specialist by The Florida Bar in Appellate Practice. Our business litigators know what to do during trial to insure that issues are preserved for appeal, if necessary. In addition, having focused trial lawyers and appellate lawyers in one firm is beneficial because you will save money during the appeal due to the fact that the firm is already familiar with your case. If you need to hire a separate Florida appellate attorney, that attorney will need to obtain and review all of the trial level documents before starting the appeal, which takes time and money.

Contingency vs. Hourly

At Pankauski Hauser, we handle cases on both an hourly and contingency basis. Our hourly clients pay a retainer, and then pay us monthly for the time that we work on their Florida business or probate case. On the other hand, our contingency clients do not pay a retainer and do not pay us monthly for our time. Instead, we take a percentage of any money that we are able to recover for them.

What are the benefits and negatives of each? It is important to understand that litigation is expensive. You should be prepared to spend a lot more than the initial retainer, especially if someone is fighting you in court, or if your case is going to trial. If you can’t afford litigation, you should be up front about it and ask for a contingency.

Only certain Florida disputes can be taken on a contingency. There has to be a possible recovery for your Florida business law firm to be paid from. The good thing about contingency cases is that, if you do not recover anything, you do not owe attorneys fees. However, contingency fees are usually a high percentage in the business and probate world. This is because your business lawyer is taking a risk on your case, and working many hours without certainty that he or she will get paid. Therefore, if you can afford litigation, paying hourly may be the way to go to recover the most money.

If you are looking to interview a business lawyer, free of charge, call (561)514-0900 ext. 101.