Jasper County Democrat, Volume 12, Number 17, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 June 1909 — BIG FEES FOR LITTLE WORK. [ARTICLE]

BIG FEES FOR LITTLE WORK.

Rensselaer, May 28, 1909. Editor Democrat: The Indiana ditch law was evidently made for the benefit of the lawyers, and the lawyers of Jasper county are not failing to take advantage of this golden opportunity to fill their pockets by means of this unjust law. The farmers of Jasper County who wish to drain their lands by means of a county ditch will do well to take notice; The ditch law provides that the attorney employed to write the petition and look after the filing and docketing of the same, can collect a reasonable fee for his services, not exceeding four per cent of the assessed benefits of the ditch. If any question is raised as to the reasonableness of the attorney’s charges, the law provides that that point can be settled by the statement of another attorney under oath, that the charge Is a reasonable one. Therefore the attorneys of_ Rensselaer, so I have been Informed by one of their number, have agreed among themselves to charge the maximum price, or four per cent of the assessed benefits of the ditch In each case, regardless of the amount of work performed. Thus they are enabled to bleed the farmers to a frazzle, and that with perfect impunity. In this way they gather in the fanner’s hard earned cash at the rate of from forty dollars to one thousand dollars for only a few hours work, the amount, of course, depending on the amount of assessed benefits of the ditch which their victims wish to construct.

The writer of this article has been a victim of one of the said attorneys and paid his share of the outrageous fee. He was afterward informed by one of the county officers, that in order to avoid being held up by these Attorneys he should have had the price fixed and in writing before hand. Therefore, in order to let others know something of the good things waiting them down the line. I have tafcen this opportunity to sound this, note of warning, hoping that It may save some honorable man from the' clutches of a band of greedy, grasping lawyers. n