Archive for the Newsletters Category

Fee Examiner’s Report Shows Inappropriate Charges for Travel, Vague Entries and Staffing Inefficiencies by Legal Firms in Detroit Bankruptcy Case

Posted On March 19th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors

A first quarterly report issued in early February by court appointed fee examiner Robert Fishman shows that Fishman raised concerns early on in the case about numerous bills submitted by law firms in Detroit’s bankruptcy suit.[1] Although Chapter 9 municipal cases do not require disclosure of legal fees (unlike Chapter 11), the Judge overseeing the […] Read More...

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Attorney’s fees reduced by more than 75% due to lack of reasonableness

Posted On March 12th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors

In a recent decision, the United States District Judge for the District of Colorado, William J. Martinez, awarded $53,391.76 in attorney fees, following more than 75% reduction of the fees sought (Strachan v Pandaw Cruises India Pvt. Ltd., No. 10-CV-02593-WJM-KLM, 2013 WL 5651399 [D Colo Oct. 15, 2013]). This case started as a copyright action […] Read More...

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It May be Time for the Two-year Law Degree

Posted On March 5th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors

Many feel law schools should offer a two-year option.  In fact, President Obama acknowledged the practical need for a change in a speech at Binghamton University last summer- “…in the first two years young people are learning in the classroom. The third year they’d be better off clerking or practicing in a firm, even if […] Read More...

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Attorney’s lack of billing judgment justifies a 50 percent reduction in the attorney’s fee award

Posted On February 26th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors

In a 2013 decision, the Supreme Court of Wyoming affirmed the trial court’s decision awarding the court appointed attorney $24,358.50 in attorney’s fees, following a 50 percent reduction of the attorney’s fee application (In re NRF, 2013 WY 9, 294 P3d 879, 883 [Wyo 2013]). In March 2009, the attorney was appointed by the court […] Read More...

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Apple requests disqualification of Compliance Monitor, citing inappropriate financial stake and exorbitant hourly rate

Posted On February 19th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors

When is an excessive fee still considered “fair”? Apparently, to some, it can be if the lawyer is court-appointed. Defendant Apple has asked that attorney Michael Bromwich be removed from his position as external compliance monitor in an ongoing e-books antitrust suit, objecting to the attorney’s excessive hourly rate and “financial interest in the proceedings.”[1] […] Read More...

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New York Judge slashes Winston & Strawn’s $20,000 fee request for billing excessive hours and unreasonable attorney rates

Posted On February 12th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors

In December of last year, a Magistrate judge in the Southern District reduced law firm Winston & Strawn’s fee request by more than 80% in a pro bono case against New York City, finding the hours claimed by the firm to be excessive and the attorney rates unsupported by evidence of the attorneys’ experience. (Alli […] Read More...

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Court of Appeals of Indiana: Attorneys’ Fees Awarded Should Be Proportionate to the Claims Prevailed On

Posted On February 5th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors

In a July 2013 decision, the Court of Appeals of Indiana, in the case of Longest v Sledge, 2013 WL 3744095 (Ind. App., 2013), awarded attorney fees for only one quarter of the billed hours, and reduced the attorney’s hourly rate to a rate prevailing in the community. The consequence of this decision was almost […] Read More...

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Federal District Court: Limited success justifies an 80% reduction of requested attorneys’ fees award

Posted On January 29th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors

In a recent decision, the Northern District of California, [Moralez v Whole Foods Mkt., Inc., 2013 WL 3967639 [ND Cal July, 2013] reduced requested attorneys’ fees by 80%, due to the plaintiff’s limited success on the merits and poor descriptions of services. In March 2012 a wheelchair user brought an action against Whole Foods Market, […] Read More...

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Are Law Schools Missing The Boat When It Comes To Training Lawyers How To Fairly Bill For Their Services?

Posted On January 22nd, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors

Recently, Nicole Black posted a MyCase blog entitled Things You Didn’t Learn in Law School: Billing. Ms. Black’s point is this: law schools do not prepare their students on how to fairly and correctly bill clients.  Nicole gave an example of a lawyer who somehow saw it fit to bill his client for a 29 […] Read More...

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How much is too much when it comes to Billing for Temporary Lawyers?

Posted On January 15th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors

A Law Blog by Jacob Gershman entitled The Am Roundup: Dispute over Cost of Temp-Help Lawyers, discusses the practice of law firms hiking up the billable hour rate of temporary legal help in class action suits.  The blog demonstrates just how easy it is for lawyers to stretch their billable rates when complicated litigations are […] Read More...

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