ABSTRACT
The fact of contingency itself does not work to the financial disadvantage of an individual client in a particular case. The critics argue that many contingent fee contracts overprice the speculative character of the arrangement and that occasional losses are more than offset by the high rate paid on recoveries. Part of the difficulty of the problem of judging the fairness of the contingent fee system in personal injury litigation arises from the existence of two different principles of "fair" pricing. In 1908 the Committee on Contingent Fees of the New York State Bar Association submitted its report on the results of its "consideration [of] the abuses of the contingent fee." The New York studies give some support for common assumptions about patterns of specialization among lawyers who handle personal injury litigation. The lawyer's work in settlement involves consultation with clients, investigation and interviews with witnesses, and negotiations with the defendant.
