The real estate Broker we had for this house. We saw it on Saturday. And I loved it!!!! It was a sell by owner deal. We called the number and they said sure we are home come see it....We saw it, loved it. Agreed on how much to buy it for on the back of an envelope. Signed a homemade promissary agreement to settle. Gave them a check & had a closing date by Tuesday morning.. We waited until that next weekend so I could come up from GA, and BOOM we bought a house!!!!!

"I just feel that so often lawyers are maligned, that it deserves to be noted when one goes above and beyond."

Azzalea, I am so glad that you have had such good experiences with a good attorney, and I thank you for posting this. My husband is an attorney, and he is the most ethical person I have ever known, bar none.

There are good and bad in EVERY profession, but it seems that lawyers always get a bad rap, and it's so unfair.

azzalea, I'm not certain, but I wouldn't be surprised if your lawyer's action constitutes an ethics violation and possibly malpractice. It's not like lawyers have such high standards, but even if it's not a violation, it's sketchy and I personally wouldn't be happy if a lawyer took an action without my knowledge and without my consent.

You can be sure he did it giving priority to what was in his own best interest rather than yours.

What are the engagement terms when he acts without your permission? Is it hourly? Is it a contingent fee?

Orchid--that's great! Good real estate agents are priceless!

Lindsey--I feel the same way. We've dealt with this lawyer for many years, for a number of different issues, and he's always been in our corner.

Snidely--no, it's definitely not an ethics issue. We'd originally signed all the paperwork for him to handle both cases (workman's comp and civil), but when it appeared that there was no real benefit to the civil suit that we agreed to let it go. He will charge us a percentage of the recovery, and he's ALWAYS been honest and very fair in his billing. He's not one of those lawyers who charges by the minute when you call with a question or for an update. I'm really sorry you feel so negatively toward lawyers. We've known our guy for decades, he's always gone above and beyond for us. At one point in time, he did many more thousands of $$$ of work for us than we paid for. And that's the point, I want to laud the fact that there ARE lawyers out there who will go the extra mile for their clients.

Seriously Azzalea, I was thinking about you today and wondered where you went. Glad to see you post and that your DH is ok.

Professional experience...well, I took Kitty to the vet today, and the vet talked to me quite a while about her health (she's ok, just skinny as a rail) as well as our dog's issues, and the dog wasn't even there. I didn't feel like he was eager to give me the minimum amount of time as often happens. He will phone me tonight with Kitty's blood results. I'm happy.

So...he will charge you a percentage. What's 'noble' about this? Personal injury lawyers (the 'ambulance chasers') make their livings doing this.

I'm with snidely on this one. I wouldn't want an attorney suing someone on my behalf AFTER "WE ALL DECIDED TO GO AFTER THE WORKMAN'S COMP and thought it was all over." You know there's something in it for him.

I wouldn't want ANYONE doing something on my behalf without my knowledge and ESPECIALLY not an attorney.

Azzalea - I'm glad you explained the entire situation because when I read your first post I also thought that your attorney was acting unethically. However I still think he should have informed you that he was planning on proceeding with the suit. At the very least he should have notified you of the court date, especially since it's only a week away.

Chisue - Do you also have a low opinion of real estate brokers? They also charge a percentage of the sale.

It is such a shame that any of us should have such negative opinions of so many professional people.

Azzalea, good for you for having a lawyer that acts on your behalf in such a manner. Having such a long standing relationship with him I think gives a different face on the matter.

I have an excellent relationship with my vet also. Because my animals are my family, I really appreciate how my vet treats them and me. I just took my 12-1/2 year old cat in for his wellness exam and while he seems good, she did blood work as part of his exam. She called today to say that while his thyroid numbers are a bit higher than she would like, to start trying to address that may compromise his kidneys and it would not be in his best interest to do that. He has had an elevated white blood cell count for well over a year now. It is lower than before, so that is good. His weight will be rechecked in 3 months. I am happy with her "wait and see" attitude rather than taking a more expensive, aggressive and not necessarily beneficial action at this time.

It would be nice if we could have more positive experiences to share.