Home > Research Legal Advice > Personal Injury > In despute re pi settlement can i petition(the court?) for equdable dist...
Asked about 1 year ago - West Palm Beach, FL
Flagparties in dispute: my self,my attny,medical provider. Also how can the production of a closing statement be inforced?
The terms of the contract that you and your attorney entered into will govern and will likely be enforced by a court. Likewise, if there is a letter of protection between you, your medical provider and your attorney, that too will govern. Equitable distribution is sometimes sought in cases where for example multiple letters of protection have been given and the settlement proceeds are inadequate to satisfy those obligations.
Your question leaves out a lot of specifics but generally, let me first let me address closing statement question. Your attorney is required to present you with a detailed closing statement setting out the total settlement and everything being deducted from your settlement. This includes, the atty fees; an itemization of all costs; and an itemization of all medical bills and health liens being paid from your proceeds. It must be presented for your approval before any of monies can be distributed from the lawyer’s trust account. As for as equitable distribution, your contract will govern the fee your client is entitled to, so long as it does not exceed what is allowed under Fla Bar guidelines. With regard to the providers, you probably signed a letter of protection. We always modify ours to give us as much leverage as possible with the providers; including adding language that the proceeds will be equitably divided on settlement. Even without that, a doctor’s bill is not dispositive of what you owe. Under fla Law the provider cannot collect more than the reasonable charge for similar services in the community. The court in your personal injury case will probably not have authority to deal with that. It may require a separate action, where you put the disputed money in trust and litigate it. Hopefully it will not come to that. It very rarely does as the cost to both sides outweighs the benefits. If it is a health insurance lien, the court in your case can probably hear a petition to determine their lien if you can’t work it out.
I'm not entirely sure I understand, but if there is a fee dispute you can have that mediated by the Florida Bar. If the dispute involves medical providers also, you could do a petition for equitable distribution (or ask your attorney to). As for "enforcing production" of a closing statement, I'm unsure what you mean.
You can certainly do a motion for an equitable distribution if the medical providers are not compromising on their bills. However, concerning the attorney's fees and costs, you signed a contract with the attorney and that will be enforced. Are you having a problem with the attorney as well as the medical providers? I'm not clear from your post. Please provide more information.
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