I settled a car accident lawsuit. Why is the check made payable to me and my attorney?

When a lawyer takes on a case, he puts a lien on any money recovered. That prevents a client from going behind their back to work out their own deal. If the insurance company just made the check to you and you didn't pay the attorney then your lawyer could sue the insurance company for not protecting the lien. So if your attorney is asking for you to give them a power of attorney to endorse your name to the check or asks you to do it in person at their office, rest ured that this is normal.