Woods

The issue for our determination is the priority among a prior contractual lien on litigation settlement proceeds, of which no notice was filed in the litigation, and a subsequent attachment lien and a contractual lien, notices of which were filed. The trial court held that the prior contractual lien has priority, and we agree.

I

Procedural Background and Issues on Appeal

In March 1987, a settlement was reached in a legal malpractice action entitled Woods v. Neisar (action No. 781175, hereafter Woods v. Neisar), one of several consolidated actions pending in the Superior Court of the City and County of San Francisco. The settlement provided in part for payment of the sum of $582,500 to Eric H. Woods. This sum was put into a trust account of the law firm of Hassard, Bonnington, Rogers & Huber (Hassard Bonnington), Woods’s attorneys in Woods v. Neisar. Hassard *1152 Bonnington, appellant Haas & Najarían, appellant Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company (Fireman’s Fund), and respondent Flynn & Stewart, among others, each claimed a lien on the settlement proceeds.

On May 6, 1987, Woods filed a motion for order establishing lien priorities and allowing distribution of proceeds.…