“In England and many other countries, the contingent fee is prohibited as a form of champerty because it permits a client to carry on litigation in exchange for a promise to the lawyer of a share in the recovery. Although most states in the United States prohibit a lawyer from accepting an assignment of a percentage of the client’s cause of action as a legal fee, they do not similarly condemn, as champertous, contingent fees whereby the lawyer receives a percentage of the recovery as a fee and no fee at all if there is no recovery.” Robert H. Aronson & Donald T. Weckstein, Professional Responsibility in a Nutshell 271–72 (2d ed. 1991).
champertous
champertous (cham-p[schwa]r-t[schwa]s), adj. Of, relating to, or characterized by champerty; consti-tuting champerty (a champertous contract).
