This might be a dog bites man story, but it has a twist. Two clients accuse a New York/New Jersey personal injury firm, Finkelstein & Partners, of overcharging them by including charges on their bill allegedly paid to an outside firm, which the suit alleges was owned by the law firm.
Jeffrey Harding of Mahway, New Jersey and his mother, Nancy Harding, hired a personal injury firm, Finkelstein & Partners, to represent them in slip and fall personal injury suits. The suits resulted in fairly substantial settlements, $195,000 and $99,000, for the Hardings. The Hardings complain that charges paid to a company, Total Trial Solutions, were added to their bills in addition to the contingent fees owed the lawyers.
One presumes that the Hardings also claim that the charges were unjustified or that the services paid for were not performed. The charges themselves are relatively modest, $3870 and $2960. The Hardings new lawyer, Joseph Santoli, is examining a class action suit against the law firm reports NorthJersey.com, Mahway Man Can Pursue Suit Against Finkelstein & Partners law firm.
If the charges are a sham, the Hardings should win, get their money plus some, as should any and all other clients who were similarly ripped off, and the lawyers should be disciplined by the New Jersey bar. But if the charges were legitimate, the Hardings and their new lawyer should be ashamed. We'll see what happens.
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