Attorney Fee Arrangements and Indiana's Patient Compensation Fund for Medical Malpractice Claims
Indiana law expressly states that an attorney cannot receive more than 15% of any award the attorney obtained on behalf of his client to be paid out of the patient's compensation fund. See IC 34-18-18-1.
In 2007, however, the Indiana Supreme Court found it to be okay when an attorney used a sliding scale fee arrangement ("agreement") in representing his client in a medical malpractice case, stating it was not an unreasonable fee given the circumstances and difficulty of the case. Under the Court's holding, for example, if the maximum amount recoverable under Indiana's Medical Malpractice Act ($1,250,000) was awarded to the patient, "the maximum possible total attorney fee would be $400,000, calculated by taking 100% of the non-Fund recovery ($250,000) plus 15% of $1,000,000 Fund recovery ($150,000). The resulting attorney fee would be 32% of the total recovery . . . ." In re Stephens, 867 N.E.2d 148 (Ind. 2007).
