Posted On December 17th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
In a June 2014 decision, an attorney in a divorce action who did not have a fee agreement in writing with his client was not allowed to use a lodestar multiplier for his fee award. This case involved an attorney who represented his client in two divorce cases. The attorney claims that he initially told […] Read More...
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Posted On December 10th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
A recent survey by HBR Consulting LLC showed corporate legal spending growth slowing and more legal work being moved in-house over the past year[1]. Lauren Chung, senior director of HBR’s law consulting practice suggested that in an effort to control costs corporate consumers continue to pressure their law firms for alternative fee arrangements, including outcome-dependent […] Read More...
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Posted On December 3rd, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
On August 26th the Second Circuit, in the case Mishkin v. Lopalo, vacated a June 2013 federal court order which had denied former special liaison Marion S. Mishkin’s fee application which had initially been deemed “grossly excessive by the court. In doing so, the Court stated “[i]t was clear error to deny Mishkin any fee […] Read More...
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Posted On November 19th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
In a September 2014 case, Division 1 of the Fourth District held that the County of San Diego could recover labor costs expended for an attorney and paralegals to prepare an administrative record. This case involved a plan for a remediation project at a shooting range, which was approved by the County. The former owners […] Read More...
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Posted On November 12th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
In Lumen View Tech. LLC v. Findthebest.com, Inc.[1], Judge Denise Cote Court ordered, Lumen, a Non-Practicing Entity, to pay attorney fees after finding this qualified as an “exceptional case” under an attorney fee-shifting statute[2]. The criteria for an “exceptional case” was recently liberalized[3] in the Supreme Court’s decision Octane Fitness[4]. The Court instructed that an […] Read More...
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Posted On November 5th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
In a September 2014 decision, a Second District Court of Appeals in California found that, in contrast to federal law, California state law does not mandate that trial courts demonstrate exactly how attorneys’ fees are calculated.[1] This case involved a lawsuit brought by an employee of the California Department of Corrections And Rehabilitation (CDCR). The […] Read More...
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Posted On October 29th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
Legal representation related to large, complex matters can be especially lengthy and expensive for companies. The reality is that litigation demands extraordinary resources and attention which most companies cannot afford to give. The challenge: Large, complex litigations stretch the resources of many in-house legal departments. They feel a loss of control over the ligation process […] Read More...
Posted On October 22nd, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
An Above the Law blog dated September 11, 2014, written by Matt Kaiser, talks about the substantial amount of legal fees incurred by federal employees who may have not done anything wrong, but inevitably must defend themselves in litigation arising out of government investigations. He maintains that due to the sensitive and serious nature of […] Read More...
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Posted On October 15th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
Arizona U.S. District Court Judge Grant Murray Snow issued a ruling on September 11, 2014, awarding $4.4 million in legal fees to attorneys who won a racial profiling case against Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. [1]The award will be split amongst four plaintiffs groups who collectively helped prove that the Sherriff’s Office had discriminated against Latinos […] Read More...
In a September 2014 decision, Save Our Neighborhood Group v. City of Lancaster (AV California, LLC), a California appellate court declared that the trial court abused its discretion in relying solely on law firm size to calculate the plaintiff’s award of attorneys’ fees. In this case, the plaintiff Save Our Neighborhood Group (SONG), a non-profit […] Read More...
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