Opinion ID: 1704682
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Attorney Fees in General

Text: There are two types of attorney fees involved in the present case. The first type is the contractual contingency fee. This fee is not a statutory feeit is not authorized by statute (it is authorized by contract between the employee and the attorney), but it is limited by statute (La. Rev.Stat. 23:1141, quoted in footnote 2). [3] Moreover, the contractual fee is not assessed against the employer or the employer's insurer, but is contractually payable by the employee to the attorney out of the employee's recovery of benefits that is attributable to the litigation handled by the attorney. Finally, the contractual fee, as a contingency fee, is payable in every case of successful litigation over unpaid benefits, irrespective of the employer's or insurer's failure to reasonably controvert the claim that benefits are due to the employee. On the other hand, attorney fees (as well as penalties) awarded for failing to reasonably controvert the claim are statutory fees assessed against the employer or the insurer (or both). [4] Finally, statutory fees are not payable in every case of successful litigation, but rather are payable only where the employer or insurer fails to pay benefits timely and fails, at trial, to show a reasonable controversy over the claim (or to show that nonpayment is the result of conditions over which the employer or insurer had no control).