A U.S. District Court Judge slashed the requested attorney fees for a recent $32 million class action settlement by over $5 million.[1] The law firms were requesting fees of $8 million, but Judge Edward Davila of the Northern District of California found only $2.4 million in fees to be justified, resulting in a reduction of […] Read More...
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Posted On September 24th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
In a recent Supreme Court case, Octane Fitness, LLC v. Icon Health & Fitness, Inc.,[1] the United States Supreme Court held that a party that prevails under the Lanham Act (the major federal statute governing United States trademark law) is entitled to attorney’s fees in “exceptional cases.” An exceptional case “stands out from others with […] Read More...
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Posted On September 17th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
As reported in a National Law Journal article of August 14, 2014, Unilever settled a class action brought by plaintiffs in the United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, alleging that they suffered hair loss and scalp injury as a result of a product, Suave Professionals Keratin Infusion 30 day smoothing kit, which was […] Read More...
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Posted On September 10th, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
Earlier this year we asked whether law schools are adequately developing their students’ practical and professional skills. [See Legal Fee Advisors’ publications: Are Law Schools Missing The Boat When It Comes To Training Lawyers: How To Fairly Bill For Their Services?]. We also highlighted some of the limitations of, and alternatives to classroom learning. [It […] Read More...
Posted On September 3rd, 2014 by Legal Fee Advisors
In a recent decision, Betz v. Diamond Jim’s Auto Sales,[1] the Wisconsin Supreme Court considered whether a plaintiff’s attorney is entitled to statutory attorney’s fees when, without the knowledge or approval of the attorney, the plaintiff and defendant enter into a settlement agreement that does not discuss attorney’s fees. The Court recognized that if clients […] Read More...
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A California Superior Court Judge recently slashed the $1.15 million requested by attorneys after the settlement of a Marin County Welfare case by more than $700,000.[1] The attorneys said the time they spent during a three-year legal battle fighting to reform a welfare program was worth at least $2.4 million, but they ended up with […] Read More...
The well renowned law firm DLA Piper has reached a confidential settlement in its highly controversial suit stemming from unpaid legal fees. Adam H. Victor, an energy industry executive, was sued by DLA Piper for not paying a portion of his legal bills in the amount of $675,000, which he claimed were excessive. In response, […] Read More...
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Dual partnership tiers are becoming entrenched in law firm culture as numbers of non-equity partners continues to climb. According to a current survey by The American Lawyer (a sibling publication of The New Jersey Law Journal), a mere 17 of the 100 top-grossing law firms are made up of only one tier of equity partners.[1] […] Read More...
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A recent Pennsylvania District Court decision awarded attorneys’ fees in the amount of $70,948.89, which constituted a 50% reduction of the $140,682.00 originally requested. The federal judge ruled that the fees were duplicative, unnecessary, and unreasonable due to the amount of hours spent on the same type of work, redundant staffing at hearings, and the […] Read More...
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In a July 2014 decision in a disability access case, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California reduced the amount of attorney fees sought by the plaintiff from $1,444,513.84 to $758,153.89. The Court used a two-step method to calculate a reasonable fee award. The first step was to determine a presumptive fee […] Read More...
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