Can I Fire My Personal Injury Lawyer in Florida? The Rules, With Links to the Text

By Dominic L. Scheer, Esq., Florida Bar No. 1022250 · Reviewed by Dominic L. Scheer, Esq. · Last updated September 28, 2026

Every link on this page goes to the official text: the Florida Statutes on the Legislature's site, and the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar on the Bar's site. Rule numbers below refer to Chapter 4 of those rules. Nothing here is a substitute for reading your own fee contract, which controls between you and your lawyer.

Where does it say I can discharge my lawyer?

Two places in the Bar's rules. First, Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(C) requires a lawyer, before signing a contingency fee contract in a personal injury case, to give the client a copy of the Statement of Client's Rights for Contingency Fees and a full opportunity to understand it. That statement, which is part of the rule, tells the client in plain words that they may discharge the lawyer, and adds that if the discharge is without good cause after the three-day period, the client may have to pay a fee for the work already done. Second, Rule 4-1.16 governs what happens when a representation ends for any reason, including discharge by the client. Both are in the Chapter 4 PDF linked from the Bar's rules page: Rules Regulating The Florida Bar.

What is the three-day cancellation rule?

Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(A)(ii) requires every Florida contingency fee contract in a personal injury matter to contain a clause allowing the client to cancel by written notice within three business days of signing. If the client cancels in that window, the client owes no fee for work performed, only reimbursement of amounts the lawyer reasonably advanced to others on the client's behalf. If you signed with a firm days ago and regret it, this is your cleanest exit.

What is the maximum contingency fee in a Florida injury case?

Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(B)(i) sets a schedule. Without prior court approval, a contingent fee that exceeds it is presumed clearly excessive. As the rule reads in the June 2026 edition:

• Before the filing of an answer or the demand for appointment of arbitrators: 33 1/3 percent of any recovery up to $1 million; 30 percent of the portion between $1 million and $2 million; 20 percent of the portion above $2 million.
• After the filing of an answer or the demand for appointment of arbitrators, through the entry of judgment: 40 percent up to $1 million; 30 percent of the portion between $1 million and $2 million; 20 percent above $2 million.
• If all defendants admit liability at the time of filing their answers and request a trial only on damages: 33 1/3 percent up to $1 million; 20 percent of the portion between $1 million and $2 million; 15 percent above $2 million.
• An additional 5 percent of any recovery after the institution of any appellate proceeding, or when post-judgment relief or action is required to collect on the judgment.

Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(B)(ii) lets a client who cannot obtain a lawyer under the schedule petition the court to approve a higher fee. The schedule is the ceiling for the case, not for each lawyer who touches it.

What happens to the fee when two firms work on one case?

Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(D) addresses the division of a contingency fee between lawyers who are not in the same firm: the lawyer with primary responsibility receives a minimum of 75 percent of the total fee and the lawyer with secondary responsibility a maximum of 25 percent, unless two or more lawyers accept substantially equal active participation and a court approves the division on a sworn petition. Rule 4-1.5(f)(5) requires the lawyer, on the conclusion of a case with a recovery, to prepare a closing statement itemizing all costs and expenses together with the amount of fee received by each participating lawyer or law firm. If you switched firms during your case, that closing statement should show both.

The rules do not themselves say what a discharged lawyer may claim. That question is answered by Florida court decisions, which we do not cite in marketing copy; the short version, as our main page explains, is that the claim is limited to the reasonable value of the work done before the discharge, capped by the contract, and payable only if the case recovers. A lawyer who withdraws voluntarily before the case resolves is in a much weaker position. Ask us and we will walk you through the decisions.

Does my old lawyer have to give me my file?

Yes. Rule 4-1.16(d) requires a lawyer, on termination of the representation, to take steps to the extent reasonably practicable to protect the client's interests, including giving reasonable notice, allowing time to employ other counsel, surrendering papers and property to which the client is entitled, and refunding any advance payment of fee or expense that has not been earned or incurred. The rule allows a lawyer to retain papers relating to the client only to the extent permitted by law.

What "papers and property to which the client is entitled" means is spelled out in Florida Bar Ethics Opinion 88-11 (Reconsideration), issued March 23, 2021. The opinion concludes that the lawyer must provide the client's original property, court filings, executed instruments, necessary correspondence, discovery the client paid for, requested legal opinions, billing statements and necessary electronic data; that the lawyer may withhold internal work product, personal notes, drafts and conflict-check materials; that copy charges should be reasonable and reflect actual costs; and that a lawyer may not ethically assert a retaining lien for fees owed in a contingent fee case unless the contingency has occurred.

Which deadlines keep running while I switch?

• Negligence, two years. Section 95.11, Florida Statutes lists actions founded on negligence under the two-year limitations period in subsection (5)(a). This covers most car accident, slip and fall and boating injury claims.
• Medical negligence, two years with presuit. The same section, subsection (5)(c), sets two years from the incident or its discovery, with an outside limit of four years absent fraud or concealment. Before suit, Section 766.106 requires a presuit investigation and a notice of intent to each prospective defendant, and bars filing suit for 90 days after the notice is delivered. Section 766.104 requires the lawyer to make a reasonable investigation before filing and to include a certificate of counsel in the complaint.
• PIP, 14 days. Section 627.736 conditions personal injury protection medical benefits on initial treatment within 14 days after a motor vehicle accident.
• Cruise passengers. The deadlines are in the ticket contract under federal maritime law and are typically far shorter. See our cruise deadlines article.

What should I do with this?

Read your fee contract. Ask your current lawyer, in writing, for a status update and a copy of your file. Then read our plain-language page on switching lawyers, run the Settlement Reality Check, and call if the numbers or the silence bother you. The consultation is free and the answer is sometimes "stay."

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the Statement of Client's Rights for Contingency Fees?

It is part of Rule 4-1.5 of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, and Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(C) requires your lawyer to give you a copy before you sign a contingency contract in a personal injury matter. The Chapter 4 rules are published as a PDF on the Bar's website.

Is the three-day cancellation window in the rule or in my contract?

Both. Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(A)(ii) requires the contract to contain it. If your contract does not, that is itself a problem with the contract.

Does the fee schedule apply per lawyer or per case?

Per case. The schedule in Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(B)(i) caps the contingent fee in the matter, and Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(D) governs how lawyers from different firms divide a fee within that cap.

Can a lawyer keep my file because I owe a fee?

In a contingency case, Florida Bar Ethics Opinion 88-11 (Reconsideration) says a lawyer may not assert a retaining lien for fees unless the contingency has already occurred. Rule 4-1.16(d) requires surrender of the papers and property the client is entitled to when the representation ends.