Attorney Referrals and Joint-Ventures

Panish Shea & Boyle is considered one of the top plaintiff’s law firms in the country and as such we get many cases referred to us from all types of lawyers and law firms. We also joint venture on cases with attorneys who want to stay more actively involved.

Our presence on a case benefits the clients, and, accordingly, benefits the lawyer who referred the case. We take pride in our referral and joint-venture relationships and our ability to offer a percentage of our attorney’s fees to those referring lawyers.

With respect to referral fees, we pride ourselves on always holding true to our referral fee arrangements. We understand the importance of referral lawyers to our firm, and we believe that referral lawyers are doing a great service to their clients by getting us involved in the representation. Accordingly, we treat all referral lawyers with the utmost respect.

Accordingly, we promptly and happily pay referral fees upon the resolution of a case. We aim to have all referral arrangements in writing and signed off by the client in advance of resolution, so there is never a misunderstanding about fees at the end of the case.

The following is a list of referral amounts we have recently paid to attorneys who have referred cases to us:

Examples of Recent Referral Fees Paid to Referral Lawyers on Individual Cases

• $7 million
• $4 million
• $3.5 million
• $1.8 million
• $1.7 million
• $1.1 million
• $806,000
• $700,000
• $700,000
• $465,000
• $450,000
• $400,000
• $350,000
• $300,000
• $275,000
• $130,000
• $103,000

Panish Shea & Boyle pays the highest referral fees allowed and complies with all State Bar rules when entering into fee-sharing agreements with other lawyers. The State Bar of California authorizes lawyers to share fees on a case, as long as the client is advised in writing. We are authorized by the State Bar of California to enter into fee-sharing agreements with all types of lawyers, regardless of their area of practice: for example, corporate lawyers, defense lawyers, entertainment lawyers, probate lawyers, criminal defense lawyers, in-house counsel, or even retired layers (as long as they are members of a bar and are legally considered to be a lawyer in their jurisdiction).

The amount of the referral fee percentage depends on the individual circumstances of each case and percentage agreements are made on a case-by-case basis. Some of the factors in determining an appropriate fee-sharing percentage are: the type of case, the risk level, the anticipated costs, the desired level of involvement of the referring attorney, and the stage of the litigation. Panish Shea & Boyle has never had a problem reaching an equitable fee-sharing arrangement with an attorney on a case, and has never had a problem with a referring attorney at the conclusion of a case.

Please contact us if you have a case you want to refer to us, joint venture with us, or if you are litigating a case that has reached a difficult stage and you need our assistance. We can assist in cases in any stages of litigation, dependent upon the facts of each individual case, and can even jump in on the eve of mediation or trial.

Panish Shea & Boyle – Strength By Your Side