Dr. Joseph Gilbert, Plaintiff-Appellant-Cross-Appellee v. Donald Johnson, Defendants-Appellees-Cross-Appellants, Sam F. Lowe, Jr., Movant-Appellant

ALVIN B. RUBIN, Circuit Judge,

specially concurring:

Were the matter open for consideration, I would deny lawyers employed on a contingent fee the right to intervene in order to safeguard their fees, at least when they can protect their interest in some other way. A lawyer is entitled to protection, but he can usually safeguard the fee he has earned by some means other than intervention. In such cases “the disposition of the action [will not] as a practical matter impair or impede his ability to protect that interest.” Rule 24(a)(2), F.R.C.P.

In Georgia, a lawyer employed on a contingent fee…