Reference no: EM131657599

Question: Smith hired attorney Lewis to represent her as a plaintiff in a personal injury suit. They signed a contract of employment that provided that attorney fees would be paid based upon a "contingency fee of forty percent (40%) of final recovery whether by trial or by settlement." Lewis pursued the litigation on Smith's behalf for almost two years. Smith spoke little English, so Lewis communicated with her using interpreters. Lewis arranged for a settlement, and he claims that Lee, an interpreter for Smith, expressed Smith's authorization of the settlement. Later, however, another interpreter called to ask about the status of the case and indicated that Smith had not authorized the settlement. Lewis then rescinded the settlement and successfully prevented the other party from enforcing it. However, Smith fired Lewis and hired another attorney to pursue the case further. Lewis filed an attorney's lien and sued Smith for $5,000, which represented 40 percent of the rejected $12,500 settlement that he negotiated, plus the $883.44 in expenses that he had paid. Does the contract of employment give Lewis the right to a 40 percent fee?