We reported back in February 2009, here, about a case in which a Manhattan jury found a subway car operator 65% liable for running over a drunk college student (and severing his leg below the knee).The jury found that the driver should have seen the young man in time to stop.

The defendant

Most personal injury case retainer agreements provide for a one-third legal fee contingent upon a recovery (by verdict or settlement) and will include language something like this:

The percentage fee is calculated on the net sum recovered after deduction for expenses and disbursements properly chargeable to the case such as investigation and expert fees.

So