Lawyers must be paid on a basis determined before the trial begins and that basis may not change dependent on the outcome of the trial or the amount of the settlement.
I agree with this in principle. But, there are those rare cases when someone who is REALLY poor gets screwed over by someone with deep pockets. When the opposing entity can hire the best council that money can buy there is a chance of loosing regardless of the merits of your case. The possibility of becoming financially destitute on top of whatever injury prompted that case is quite likely to keep people from suing when they SHOULD. Also it will make it a lot harder for the "little guy" to hire a decent attorny regardless of how good their case is.