While you will not be able to get a contingency fee arrangement unless the lawyer thinks you have a good case, there are many ways that he can make out well while you will get little or nothing. Remember, lawyers live by the written record, and what the say can be denied. If they tell you one thing, but leave a paper trail that says something different, you can bet that if it comes to court they will deny what was said and refer to the paper trail. Lawyers make lots of mistakes. While many of these mistakes are correctable, others are more serious and are not.
Many lawyers are incompetent.
Remember if your lawyer goes before the judge to ask that the judge order his fee be paid, or that he be allowed to withdraw from the case, the judge will likely be prejudiced in the lawyer's favor. It is a natural human tendency to favor those who are part of your club against those who are not.