Even if they get paid in advance, lawyers are acutely aware of the costs of litigation (even when you ultimately win) and that losing cases is one of the most common triggers for lawyers being sued, so, they really don't like losing cases even if they are getting paid. (There are caveats and exceptions, sure, but as a broad rule...)

Successful legal or medical malpractice suits are rare, and there's insurance for that. All law firms are a little profligate and will have their own internal calculus as to how much to push the client.

The problem is that it's impossible to know if the lawyer coming after you is one of the ethical ones or not.

Dropping a case or settling a case is not the same as losing a case. There is quite a lot of legal pressure and financial cost that can be applied that puts you at no risk of losing a case.