May a lawyer charge a separate or contingent fee to collect medical-payments insurance coverage?

Plain-English summary

A lawyer expected to litigate a client’s medical-payments coverage and asked whether a fee could be charged.

The opinion says routine collection often takes little effort and many lawyers do not charge an added fee. If substantial work is expected, a fee related to that effort, including a contingent fee in some cases, is permissible, subject to reasonableness of the final amount.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2001, before Missouri’s 2007 revisions to the Rules of Professional Conduct. Later amendments or opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context and verify current rules before relying on it. The official Rule 4-1.9 and 4-1.10 reference notes identify July 1, 2007 amendments.

Common questions

Q: Is a fee always barred unless the claim is contested?

A: No. The opinion ties permission to anticipated effort and reasonableness.

Q: Can a contingent fee be used?

A: The opinion permits one in some cases involving substantial effort.

Background and rules framework

The published answer applies a reasonableness standard to the proposed collection fee without citing a numbered rule.

See also

• Missouri Informal Op. 20090043: Subrogation Fee

Source

• Landing page: https://mo-legal-ethics.org/informal-opinion/20010069/

• Rule revision reference: Missouri Informal Opinion 20030007

Original opinion text

Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.

QUESTION: Attorney recently heard that it is unethical to charge a fee on med pay unless the claim is contested. Is this true? Attorney believes that Attorney is going to have to litigate a client’s claim under the client’s medical payments coverage. Are there any ethical rules on this question?

ANSWER: Attorney may charge a fee that is appropriate in light of the effort involved in collecting. Normally, collecting medical payments coverage requires very little effort, so many attorneys do not charge for this in addition to a fee for other work in the case. If it is clear that the medical payments coverage will involve substantial effort by the attorney, it is permissible to charge a fee that reasonably relates to the effort anticipated, including a contingent fee, in some cases. In the end, the actual fee must be reasonable.