The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-10-10
THE AMBULANCE CHASERS.
LAWYERS VINO HUSTLE FOR THE
TICTIMs OF 1CCIDENTS.

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Quick Work Made necessary bS Co'npetition-
Tricks TO SET
Tor the Pre1ndice AE"'ns' hhe'e HA"'er''
The activity OF New Sork's accident lawyers.
more commonly known as ambulance chasers.
has frequently boon commented on, and not very
long ago there was a proposition that one of tho
legal associations should inquire into their
business methods. II no such investigation Is
made IL is believed by the most reputable at
torneys that some other steps must DO taken
soon to restrict the enterprise OF the ambulance
chasers.
The stories told Of these men are frequently
humorous. and the traditional dignity OF tho
profession, which is subjected to many shocks
nowadays, suffers more from their conduct than
from that of any other branch OF the business.
Aprompt call at the hospitals after the morning
papers had published news OF an accident would
- ~ L.st..s. -.
1ashioned way OF uo,hs business nowadays
There are quarters OF the city in which fifteen
- -, ~,
insuring the victim are apt toreceiVo WORD tnat
his legal representative is prepared to deal
with the compnry. Such astonishing oyidencea
side, where anybody who witnesses an accident
tnoyvs that money will nrobably no Maid To the
victim. SO the man in the crowd who thinks of
It first runs to n nearby lawyers ofhce-and
thov r x,orv cnOpnn on the lower east aide
.hey arc Fely 1oI'n'on on nv " !" ua'. nc %
tcns ono . VI u iuwsere' Ii "a mn On 'ne
course, paid for the tip. The victim may or may
~, ho ~ . con- ;,ion ~ .ngas, n LAWYER. hnt !,
ro"n,r.s on,x sli~ht apcourassment Of tho
LAWYERS proposal to make his appointment sat
isfactory to him. So the victim is carried off to
the hospital. leaving behind him an agent au-
thor;zed-tot the ouent's own satisfaction Mt least
-.
10 get as much AS hc poseioiy 'eh u IL ZIG
insuring corporation.
Wv 80 '. ~ po -. 80. -.
lions that insure wofkmeh manifest toward
these lawyers is the fact that the proportion of
the money paid which reaches the victim, of
sao;aon, T.. CO.. su.u Thio too,rr. ~ ~. h,s;-
accident Is very small. inns feature OF the ousi-
ness has already brought to light several scan
daIs that have caused COR the lawyers impIi-
Gated a trouble nearly serious enough to accom-
plish Just what the attorneys opposed to them
are anxious for. One notable instance hap
pened sever l years ago. A man had his. arm
severely injured in an accident, for which his
employers were plainly responsible. lie went to a
large downtown office building in search of a
lawyer. and wandered into one office. Before
he came out OF II u lawyer had contracted
to take his case for so per cent. of the money re-
covered. Tho lawyer saw the officers OF the com.
pany which insured the mans employers and
he learned that, the sum to be paid would be
30 much larger than he had expected he made a
that the client was TO receive only 25 per cent.
of the amount recovered. Then he got the
S4,0Uu, gave OnerUuarloT Vi IL 10 II NlCtlUl. anu
kept the rest. The man, who was unable to
work, lived as long as he could on the money,
and when ii had all been spent went in search
of a lawyer again. This time he found
another lawyer. and when he was telling
his story in the hope of being able to get more
money out of his employers. he mentioned the
division which he had made with his attorney.
The first lawyer would have been disbarred had
he not returned the money to his former client
with the deduction OF no more than a fair
amount for his services.
The number of lawyers who have become we'll
known in the business is not large. The greater
share of the business goes to a comparatively
small number. and they are tho most illustrious
hustlers in the business. The struggle for life
and the survival OF the tttcst are doctrines that
are exhibited more strikingly in this business
than in any other. One example of the way in
which they go to work may be found in a case
reported last week. A woman was knocked
down in Park row, a sympathetic crowd gath
cred around her, and one man, leaning forward,
thrust n business card into her closed hand. 1t
was there when she got to the hospital. and
when the man whose name it bore presented
himself to see her the next morning. he was, of
course. admitted. He got the case, too.
Tho regular course of business is for the law
yer to follow the entries of accidents on the
blottcrs OF the police stations and the hospitals.
These they study indefutigably. The old plan
of waiting for the accounts OF accidents in the
papers has gone entirely out of vogue excepting