Why Lawyers Often Let This Happen
Not all lawyers, but some, especially in high-conflict cases, recognise very quickly when a client is:
- Driven by control
- Addicted to conflict
- Unable to let go
- Willing to spend endlessly
For certain firms, this becomes:
A predictable revenue stream.
If a client:
- Refuses settlement
- Demands constant filings
- Wants to “win at all costs”
- Needs to feel dominant
That client can generate tens or hundreds of thousands in fees.
The Legal Industry Reality (Rarely Spoken Out Loud)
Litigation = billable hours
High-conflict personalities:
- Create never-ending work
- Generate procedural complexity
- Demand constant action
- Fuel continuous escalation
From a business standpoint:
They are extremely profitable clients.
Ethical Lawyers vs Unethical Lawyers
Ethical lawyers:
- Push for settlement
- Advise proportionality
- Encourage resolution
- Try to contain conflict
- Warn clients about cost and risk
Unethical or conflict-profiting lawyers:
- Escalate unnecessarily
- File excessive motions
- Encourage aggression
- Feed the client’s rage
- Avoid resolution language
Why Some Lawyers Don’t Stop Them
- Money
- Client pressure
- Fear of losing the client
- Conflict culture within litigation
- Normalization of high-conflict behavior
Dark Dynamic: Mutual Reinforcement Loop
Controller + aggressive lawyer can form:
A mutually reinforcing system of escalation
- Client supplies rage + obsession
- Lawyer supplies legal weapons
- Conflict escalates
- Fees multiply
- Nobody stops it
But Here’s the Key Reality Check
Even the most aggressive lawyer cannot override:
- Judicial discretion
- Evidence
- Legal standards
- Procedural abuse detection
Eventually:
➡ Judges see patterns
➡ Courts intervene
➡ Sanctions appear
➡ Restrictions happen
Which is why vexatious litigant orders exist.
Psychological Reframe (For You)
When you think:
“His lawyer must be laughing all the way to the bank”
What you’re actually seeing is:
A wounded, control-driven personality being financially exploited by a system that profits from unresolved conflict.
That is not power.
That is tragedy dressed as dominance.
Deep Truth
People who spend €10k–€100k+ to control rather than resolve are:
- Deeply dysregulated
- Emotionally trapped
- Psychologically enslaved by their own fear
The money loss is just the external symptom.
