Is It Ethical to Outsource Lien Resolution and Bill as a Case Cost?
Greg Maxwell
I help plaintiff attorneys and their clients save on income taxes — and I help plaintiffs transition from pre- to post-settlement life.
Most plaintiff personal injury attorneys who are handling a client’s case switch at settlement from being the client’s advocates into lien resolution experts.
Would you prefer to watch a video on this topic? Click here.
After working up the case and getting a favorable settlement, the personal injury attorneys often than deal directly with the healthcare providers, Medicaid, Medicare, and other entities that have liens on the case.
Unless you as a personal injury attorney love negotiating liens, it’s important to know that you don’t necessarily have to do the lien negotiations yourself. You can outsource lien resolution to professionals and charge it as a case cost to the client. There are ethics opinions in various states on this very topic that allow this arrangement.
For example, Utah has an ethics opinion from 2014 that enables plaintiff attorneys to outsource lien resolution to an expert and charge the fees that an expert might charge to the client as a case cost.
So, if you don’t enjoy resolving liens for your clients, why not outsource those to a professional? That way, you don’t have to deal with lien resolution issues with Medicaid, Medicare, and the health care providers unless you want to. It’s ethical — and much cheaper for you and your staff to outsource it if you can.
If you have any questions about a lien-related topic, give us a call or send us an email at [email protected]. Your message is sent directly to our team and our lien resolution partner. We can help you work through any lien issues in your cases.
?? Have Questions? Book a Call to Chat ??
This article first appeared on the Amicus Settlement Planners blog at https://www.amicusplanners.com/is-it-ethical-to-outsource-lien-resolution-and-bill-as-a-case-cost?/.