What is the impact of section 6146 of the California Motor Vehicle Accident Benefits Act on insurers?

Section 6146 will provide little, if any, relief to insurers. Since attorney fees are paid out of the plaintiff's recovery, fee limitations merely reapportion the award between the plaintiff and his or her attorney. Juries are prohibited from considering attorney fees in making damage awards. (Bauguess v. Paine (1978) 22 Cal.3d 626, 634, 150 Cal.Rptr. 461, 586 P.2d 942.) The available evidence indicates that this prohibition is effective. (See California's MICRA, supra, at p. 943, and sources cited therein.)