The fee agreement must include a provision for interest in order to support such charges. Prompt payment in full for services rendered is vital to our ability to efficiently provide quality legal services to all clients. All payments received on account for fees billed will be credited first to the most recent charges on your account. There are several types of liens available to lawyers to secure payment for services rendered. Although the liens have common characteristics, they are jurisdiction-specific and it is important to consult the applicable statute and case law for nuances in the application of a particular type of lien in the particular jurisdiction.
Equitable considerations support the assertion of the charging lien.
The charging lien extends only to services rendered in the proceedings in which the fund was created and not to fees owed for other services. A charging lien is not available in those cases in which the client has agreed to pay the lawyer on an hourly or other basis but has failed to do so. A specific agreement is required to support a charging lien, so if it appears that the fee arrangements must be modified so that the lawyer will look to a particular fund for payment, a new fee agreement specifically providing for such an arrangement should be executed. The lawyer must exercise care to assert a charging lien in an amount equal to the fees owed and nothing more. Before enforcing a charging lien, the lawyer should advise the client to retain other counsel because a conflict of interest now exists between the lawyer and the client.