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MARYLAND STATE BAR ASSOCIATION, INC.
COMMITTEE ON ETHICS
ETHICS DOCKET NO. 1988-41
Trust Funds: Duty of Attorney Regarding Distribution of Funds to Health Care Provider Following Settlement of Personal Injury
You recite that your office has been handling a matter involving personal injury wherein there are multiple health care providers. The defendant in the case contested liability, but a settlement was reached.
You have been negotiating with several health care providers in order to reach an equitable disbursement of the funds on a proportionate basis and leave the plaintiff with some monies to reimburse her for injuries sustained, some of which are permanent in nature. One of the providers has indicated that they will not accept less than their total bill. While your client signed an assignment to that provider when the case was initially filed, the same assignment applied to all of the health care providers. Since the case has not gone to verdict and a settlement was reached, you feel that in the interest of all of the parties, including your client, you have the right to apportion the amount to be paid to the health care providers since your client has not been made whole by this settlement. You indicate that another factor relevant is that the statute of limitations has already run with respect to the health care providers filing suit against your client. You inquire as to whether you have to disburse the full amount to the health care provider who will not reduce his bill.
The Committee on Ethics is charged with the responsibility of providing opinions interpreting the Rules of Professional Conduct. It is outside of the authority of the Committee to opine on matters of law, and the Committee believes that the answer to your inquiry depends upon the legal consequences attendant to the assignments. Under the circumstances, we feel that we cannot respond to your inquiry.
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