Ottawa Car Accident Lawyers - Ottawa Injury Lawyers - What are the steps to transfer a personal injury file and claim from one lawyer to another?

Ottawa Car Accident Lawyers - Ottawa Injury Lawyers - What are the steps to transfer a personal injury file and claim from one lawyer to another - PART 2?

In summary, the steps are as follows:

1. Notify the former injury lawyer that you have retained a new injury lawyer;
2. Request for the physical file be transferred from your former injury lawyer to your new injury lawyer ( serve him with a direction seeking that the file be delivered to the new accident - injury lawyer );
3. Notify all parties of the change in injury lawyers;
4. If the matter is in court ( a statement of claim has been issued ), notify the court and all opposing lawyers that you have retained a new injury lawyer;
5. If there is objection from your former lawyer to hand over the physical file, negotiate the terms of the transfer of the file;
6. If negotiations fail and your former injury lawyer refuses to hand over the physical file, file a formal complaint with the Law Society of Upper Canada and file an application (or motion as the case may be) seeking a court order compelling your former lawyer to hand over the physical file - order for delivery of the file;
7. File an application for assessment, which is a court process allowing clients to challenge a lawyer’s accounts and claims for liens against files; and
8. Once the file is obtained ( voluntarily or by court order ), review the file.

If you choose to leave your current personal injury lawyer and transfer your injury claim to another law injury law firm, the process can be easy or quite complicated depending on your former lawyer. Your new injury lawyer will need the physical file from your former accident lawyer. Assuming you have paid any account rendered by your former accident lawyer, getting your file should be as easy as requesting it from your former injury lawyer.

Complications can arise because of issues such as whether you owe any money to your former lawyer and whether there is outstanding accounts owed to your former lawyer and whether there will be a dispute over any percentage billing or fee billing of the file (contingency fee agreements). In every case, if the matter is already in Court (a court action has been commenced) the client must notify the Court and all parties of the change of lawyers. As your new personal injury lawyer, we will file the needed documents with the Court and notify all parties. If your claim is not in Court and you are at the pre litigation stage, we will notify all the parties and insurers involved. We handle every step necessary to have the file transferred.

The physical file held with your injury lawyer is your property. You are entitled to your property and the lawyer is entitled to a copy of the file. Your new accident lawyer will need your file to continue prosecuting your injury case. Any delay in obtaining the file can, in some circumstances, be devastating. For example, a limitation period may be missed or a court event may be missed such as an appearance at a scheduled settlement conference. The faster you can obtain a transfer of the file, the better. If there is a dispute about the account or contingency fee arrangement, obtaining the physical file often becomes an issue. If you are caught in such a situation, your new injury lawyer has options to assist you: negotiating a settlement of the fee is always possible. Also, if the former lawyer is seeking a percentage of the recovery, that issue can be resolved in various ways (i.e. agree on an amount, agree on a percentage, agree to preserve the settlement funds until there is agreement or a court order determining the issue). If negotiation fails, a complaint to the Law Society of Upper Canada can sometimes assist. Also, an application to Court for delivery of the file and a determination of rights to the file is always available as well as an application for an assessment of the account rendered by the former accident lawyer. You can always ask the former injury lawyer to produce an account under the Solicitor’s Act of Ontario, and then proceed to assess the account.

At Plant Quinn Thiele Mineault Grodzki PC, we can assist you in transferring a personal injury file from your former lawyer to us as your new injury law firm. We handle all steps necessary to effect the transfer of the file. However, if the dispute with your former lawyer can be easily resolved, we often suggest that mediating or negotiating the issue is appropriate. If the lawyer client relationship has irrevocably broken down, we will take over the file under a new retainer agreement with you. We offer free consultations and No Fee Until You Win fee arrangements. Call us at 613-315-4878 or 613-315-HURT or e-mail us at mquinn@pqtlaw.com. Marc-Nicholas Quinn, Lawyer, Mediator and Law Instructor. Ottawa Personal Injury Lawyer Network.