Texas Lawyers Can Renegotiate Flat Fee if They’re Fair

Lawyers can renegotiate a fixed, flat fee in a case that turns out to be more complicated than anticipated, the Texas bar’s ethics committee said in a recent opinion.

But the lawyer must prove the new fee is fair, and expected complications aren’t grounds for renegotiating a flat fee.

Under Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct 1.04, fees must be reasonable. The rule and commentary don’t address whether a lawyer can ethically try to change the fee arrangement once the matter has commenced, the committee said. But Texas courts have said a rebuttable presumption of unfairness arises if a lawyer ...