If a personal injury plaintiff, has a trial and loses, in New York State,.. does he or she have to pay court fees in the amount of $18,000?  If yes, please give law statue and or information where this information can be found.  Thank You
130967
Generally a plaintiff has to pay court costs regardless of who lives. There are just set fees for making certain filings. Also, when a plaintiff loses, they tend to have to pay the defendant's court costs and lawyer fees. The amount is not set by any statute, but depends on how much the lawyers cost.
582385
Your lawyer may have been looking at everything correctly I'm sad to say.  You're obviously suing for money damages.  Your attorney was probably working on a contingency basis (taking a percentage of what the final verdict/award is).  Then, during the scope of investigations he finds there are no "deep pockets"... no money to gain.  Odds are, if the business that hit you has no insurance, then they have no assets of any value to take.\n\nThat being said, if all you're looking for is to get a judgment, then you can always find an attorney willing to take the case.  However, you will end up paying on an hourly basis... with a HEFTY retainer, and NO guarantee of a favorable outcome.\n\nThe potential is always there (as well), that you could get the award you're looking for from a judge or jury, and this "business" could always run and file a chapter 7 bankruptcy, and again... you'd get nothing.\n\nThere is no point in suing if the other person has nothing (which I suspect was the point of your attorney dropping your case).  Check with your state's bar association though... his actions (dropping the case) may have violated some rule of professional conduct.
143308
I am sorry about your injuries.\n\nI suggest you ask your last lawyer, or any other lawyer you know, for recommendations.\n\nYour question is too serious to expect to get sound advice from Yahoo Answers.
292734
I think you first must try to resolve the matter directly with the restaurant before you can pursue suing them.  Most businesses would be responsive and would pay your medical bills, maybe a little more.  But in order to sue, your injury must have been significant, or no lawyer would take the case on a contingency basis (for about 1/3 of your award.)  If you sued via paying the lawyer an hourly rate, you would be chancing losing that amount of money.
159939
He should but whether he will is a different story. You might want to hire a lawyer for this one and sue for damages. No money for a lawyer? Call the State Bar Association and ask them to recommend someone who will work pro bono (for free) or for a part of the settlement (you can negotiate what percentage the lawyer gets ahead of time). Also, in NYS the BAR has a program where many of the enrolled lawyers will give 1 time advice for a $25 fee. Good luck.
597476
sounds like a dream case for a hungry personal injury attorney....they usually need no money up front but will take at least 33% of anything you win.....Malls are insured, so I would definitely get a good attorney fast!!!!!
264619
Technically, it is possible to sue almost anyone, but that's not your question, really.  Your question is whether it is worth the filing fee; can you win?  And for that, you need to tell the details to a liability attorney and see if they are willing to take the case on contingency fee.  If you have a complaint but can't find a lawyer willing to gamble his time and expertise to winning it, then it's probably because none of the ones you spoke to think it has much chance of winning.\n\nOne thing is in order to win a liability case, you have to be able to prove damages.  What, exactly, did you lose?  You will need documentation, of course.\n\nSo go ahead and try.  Visit with several plaintiffs' attorneys and see if they will take you up on it.
77736
loook at the document which awarded you money and make sure there is no disclaimer stating that this is the only compensation that you can receive. next call a free consulation lawyer and see what he says.  most lawyers who work in personal injury charge a 33% fee and some will not charge you if they dont collect something for you,  good luck and good health
242541
STOP! before retaining an attorney $$$, consider contacting the business and informing them of the incident and request the name of their ins. provider. Often they make reasonable offers. (in this case doc bill plus $1000)\n\nOnly if they refuse and your injuries/damages exceed your states max. small claims award by $1000 should you even consider discussing the matter with an attorney. \n\nUnless you were injured and treated professionally (have a bill) your case is weak. Damages for pain and suffering with this type of occurance will be aprox. $1000 unless you can prove the incident was the result of negligence or malice. \n\nIf you hire an attorney it is likely there won't be enough money left to pay the bill for your care.
668821
Lawyers get paid in a variety of ways - hourly, contingent or flat fee.  Contingent fees are usually in personal injury, and range from 25% to 40% of the recovery, plus expenses. Note, most states have ethics rules which cover the reasonableness of fees.  Hourly fees are dependent on the experience of the attorney, the market and complexity of the case.  Fees generally range from $150/hr in smaller markets to $450/hr. in large metro areas.  Flat fees are an agreed upon fee for an agreed upon - and limited  -service, for example $150 for a will, $500 for a simple corporation, $1000 for a dissolution, etc.  A retainer is a deposit on fees.  That money must be kept in a trust account and only drawn on by the attorney as fees are earned.\n\nNo matter what method of billing, you'll want an engagement letter from your attorney - that he or she will accept your case, and setting forth the fee agreement, the rates, what will be billed (are copies, postage, telephone and courier expenses extra?)\n\nNote also, the general American Rule is that each side pay its own legal fees in litigation.  However, there are several exceptions to this, and fee shifting (to the losing side) is sometimes possible.  You'll need to check with a local attorney on your state's laws.  In Ohio, fees in some consumer, landlord-tenant, Open Records Act cases may be fee shifted, for example, and others, along with several actions based on federal law.
49375
Call around - get a lawyer who handles this and spend $50 with them to see if you have a case.  If you do they WILL TELL YOU !
213750
Civil contempt: conditional jail sentence, fine not more than $250.00, costs and expenses of the proceedings, damages to injured party (including attorneys fees). He may not get all or any. Depends on the judge. \n\nCriminal contempt: fixed jail sentence up to 30 days, fine of not more than $250.00, costs and expenses of the proceedings, damages to injured party (including attorneys fees). Again, depends on judge. \n\nDon't get me started. I used to work with victims of domestic violence in New York State. It was exceedingly rare for a man to get a fine or any jail time for violating an order of protection. I hope you have better luck than that. Make sure you make a police report and/or file a violation in Family Court (wherever you got your order). I know it's frustrating, but the only hope you have is to keep sending him the message that you will no longer tolerate his behavior! Keep up the good work! And if you want to talk you can contact me. God Bless!
306574
hope this helps, get that B.....\n\nhttp://www.in.gov/judiciary/rules/small_claims/index.html
41304
Dont' wait until statute of limitations runs out...\nWhy is the reason a lawyer won't help? Were there witnesses? Was it reported to the store manager? Was it cought on store camera? Were there immediate pictures of the injury? Call any lawfirm in your area or get the yellow pages, or internet searches on personal injury lawyers.  Someone must be interested in handling the case.
609270
Small claims court is designed to be somewhat informal but there still must be a legitimate legal basis for any claim that is made.\n\nThe cell phone issues seems quite reasonable and if you can demonstrate she has routinely been paying 1/3 of the charges a court will very likely accept that as adequate proof of the agreement.\n\nThe loss of wages issue is a different matter. There is no legal basis for holding a party liable for the loss of wages that are incurred by the plaintiff while prosecuting a lawsuit.\n\nA small suggestion is that you tone down your rhetoric in the complaint and while in court. Using words like "malicious" is questionable and won't win you any points with a judge.
62429
Contact the clerk of courts for your area.  They will have the best knowledge as to what to do in that case and how much it will cost and that.
49109
It's all going to depend on the agreement with the attorney.  Some attorneys will take a plaintiff's case on a contingency basis and you will sign a fee agreement.  Generally, the fee agreement will delineate what the attorney will get if the plaintiff recovers (example: 35%).  Some break it down by the point when the plaintiff recovers (before suit is filed 10%, after suit is filed but before trial 25%, after trial 35% etc - generally going to be measured on the amount of work).  These are generally the "you don't pay if you don't win" arrangements, but the client is usually still responsible for expenses.  They don't advertise that, but it has to be in the fee agreement.  Some plaintiff attorneys are paid hourly.  Civil defense attorneys are typically paid by the hour, win or lose (since they typically won't be recovering anything unless there is a cross complaint).  Criminal defense lawyers are generally paid by the hour since (in many jurisdictions if not all) criminal defense attorneys cannot have contingency arrangements with their clients.  Public defenders will generally be paid whatever the court deems appropriate (a lawyer will submit their fees to the court and the judge can either approve or alter the amount).