Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Massachusetts

Re: Attorneys fee

That depends on the agreement entered into between the person owed the money (who has been unable to collect) and the attorney that they are hiring to successfully collect the debt. The amount of work involved will usually dictate the fee, and the presence or absence of a written agreement between the lender and debtor will drive the costs one way or the other.

Re: Attorneys fee

In an ordinary case seeking to enforce a promissory note, a 50% fee would almost certainly be viewed as excessive. The only possible exception would be if there were extraordinary difficulty in collecting the debt after judgment entered. With $6000 at stake, if fees were likely to rise to the $3000 level, I would recommend not going forward, as proceeding would not be effective for the client on a cost-benefit basis.

Re: Attorneys fee

It depends.

The issues relate to the competency of the person making the agreement, the nature of the agreement, and the costs that may be related.