Jenner Charged $1M to Fight Violent Video Game Law in Supreme Court, Fee Request Says
Jenner & Block charged more than $1 million to successfully challenge California’s violent video game law in the U.S. Supreme Court, according to a fee request.
The petition (PDF) asks California to pay $1.14 million in legal fees and expenses for the Supreme Court appeal, including nearly $1.03 million in fees charged by Jenner, $39,000 in expenses, and $24,000 charged for a moot court run by Supreme Court litigators Paul Clement, Lee Levine and Theodore Olson. The Washington Post has the story.
According to the newspaper, “The petition lays out in eye-popping detail—to anyone who doesn’t work for a high-powered Washington law firm—what it costs to retain a high-powered Washington law firm for a Supreme Court case.”
Senior Jenner partner Paul Smith charged the highest hourly rate, at $725 in 2009 and $765 in 2010. Charging the least was associate Krishanti Vignarajah, at $314.50 an hour.
The two groups challenging the law were the Entertainment Merchants Association and Entertainment Software Association. The Supreme Court ruled on their behalf in June, finding that the law violated the First Amendment. The industry groups are citing civil rights laws in their fee request.
