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Litigation with Legal Aid versus Litigation with Contingent/Conditional Fees

Author

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  • Lambert Eve-Angéline
  • Chappe Nathalie

    (University of Besançon and CRESE)

Abstract

In the last few years, legal aid has been much debated, especially in the European Union. Our aim is to determine in a tort litigation model the impact of legal aid upon plaintiffs’ decision whether to sue, plaintiffs’ level of expenses at trial and the level of deterrence of potential injurers. We study the two most common types of legal aid: fixed and proportional. Whatever the system, we show that increasing legal aid induces more cases filed and more deterrence (fewer accidents). Then we compare these incentives with those given by the contingent/conditional fees systems. We show that the incentives to bring suit are higher in the contingent/conditional fees systems, but incentives to take care are higher with legal aid since legal expenses from the plaintiff are higher.

Suggested Citation

  • Lambert Eve-Angéline & Chappe Nathalie, 2014. "Litigation with Legal Aid versus Litigation with Contingent/Conditional Fees," Review of Law & Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 10(1), pages 1-21, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:rlecon:v:10:y:2014:i:1:p:21:n:4
    DOI: 10.1515/rle-2013-0028
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Miceli, Thomas J & Segerson, Kathleen, 1991. "Contingent Fees for Lawyers: The Impact on Litigation and Accident Prevention," The Journal of Legal Studies, University of Chicago Press, vol. 20(2), pages 381-399, June.
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    7. Neil Rickman & Paul Fenn & Alastair Gray, 1999. "The reform of Legal Aid in England and Wales," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 20(3), pages 261-286, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Yannick Gabuthy & Pierre-Henri Morand, 2019. "Lawyer Fee Arrangements and Litigation Outcomes: An Auction-Theoretic Perspective," Working Papers of BETA 2019-03, Bureau d'Economie Théorique et Appliquée, UDS, Strasbourg.
    2. Julia Shamir & Noam Shamir, 2021. "Third-party funding in a sequential litigation process," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 52(1), pages 169-202, August.

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