Business Development

Legal Fees Get 2 Ga. Lawyers Indicted Under ‘Slayer’s Statute’

When Candace Rader and Valerie Cooke represented Debra Post in a murder case, they were allegedly paid $320,000 in legal fees through life insurance proceeds and real estate she deeded over to them. The problem is, their client was accused of—and eventually pleaded guilty in 2003—to murdering her husband. And,…

Aug 25, 2008 5:26 PM CDT

Louisiana Lawyer Accused of Hiding Fee from Firm Cites ADHD

A Louisiana lawyer accused in an ethics complaint of diverting attorney fees from his law firm cites in his defense his diagnosis with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. John M. Sharp of Baton Rouge was managing partner of the firm, Sharp Henry Cerniglia Colvin Weaver & Davis, from 2003 to 2005.…

Aug 25, 2008 2:31 PM CDT

Two Law Firms to Earn $8M in Fees for Serving as Brocade Co-Counsel

Two San Diego plaintiffs law firms will earn at least $8 million in fees to drop their backdating lawsuits against Brocade Communications and assist the company’s special litigation committee in its suit. The payment arrangements for Johnson Bottini and Robbins Umeda & Fink were disclosed under an order by U.S.…

Aug 25, 2008 11:37 AM CDT

Fair Use Right Upheld in Claim Over YouTube Dancing Baby Takedown

A federal judge in northern California questions whether Stephanie Lenz can prove that Universal Music Corp. acted in bad faith when it demanded that YouTube take down a 29-second video clip she posted of her 13-month-old baby jumping up and down to the sound of the Prince song “Let’s Go…

Aug 21, 2008 4:10 PM CDT

2nd Circuit Turns Down Milberg’s Request for a Fee Boost to $101M

A federal appeals court has turned down a request by securities class action firm Milberg to reap $101 million in fees in a settlement against Nortel Networks Corp. Milberg had sought 8.5 percent of the settlement, which amounted to about $101 million, the New York Law Journal reports. A federal…

Aug 20, 2008 4:19 PM CDT

Jackson Lewis Caps Fees in Exchange for All of Pfizer’s Employment Work

Pfizer Inc. has dubbed its law firm management effort P3, for Pfizer Partnering Program. It’s a bit of a misnomer, however, since the program involves the whittling away of law firm partners. The company now uses only 39 outside firms for U.S. litigation, down from 200 before the company instituted…

Aug 19, 2008 4:28 PM CDT

Judge Tosses Lawyer’s Challenge of Fee Agreement With Prior Partner

A judge has tossed a declaratory judgment suit over legal fees filed by a lawyer who left a law firm and took a case with him. The case highlights the issue of fees that can be paid to retiring partners, the New Jersey Law Journal reports. Judge Peter Doyne of…

Aug 19, 2008 12:09 PM CDT

Appeals Court Hits Law Firm for ‘Vague, Indecipherable Billing Statements’

A California appeals court has cut nearly $230,000 off of a request for $250,000 in attorney fees in an opinion that accuses the lawyers seeking the money of apparently padding their bills. The opinion did not identify the law firm, but opposing appellate lawyer Tom Chun told Legal Pad the…

Aug 15, 2008 2:58 PM CDT

Judge Slashes Fee Request for WilmerHale and Wiley Rein

Updated: A federal judge has slashed an attorney fee request in a false claims suit from $20 million to a little more than $7.5 million. His opinion explaining his action takes aim at fees charged by the two plaintiffs’ firms, WilmerHale and Wiley Rein. Chief U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth…

Aug 14, 2008 2:42 PM CDT

Cybersex Client’s Fee Claim Doesn’t Prevail in Keker Withdrawal Motion

Miles Monroe, the character in the Woody Allen movie Sleeper, knows something about sex machines and the travails of a very modern life. Now, it seems, he has something in common with the law firm of Keker & Van Nest. The law firm has won permission to withdraw from litigation…

Aug 14, 2008 1:35 PM CDT

Judge Suggests Legal Fees Padded Due to Billable-Hour Requirement

A dispute over $64,000 in a judge’s unpaid legal fees has highlighted law firm billable-hour requirements. Judge David French of Palm Beach County claims the Rutherford Mulhall law firm charged him for 300 unnecessary hours of work in his alimony case and suggests that law firm policies may be to…

Aug 14, 2008 12:18 PM CDT

GCs Give More Scrutiny to Legal Bills, Spurring More Fee Disputes

Los Angeles lawyer Gerald Knapton’s niche is representing companies or their lawyers in disputes over legal fees. The work is good. “I’m busier now than I have ever been,” Knapton told the Daily Journal (sub. req.). Knapton says the reason is the inefficient law firm billing model that charges clients…

Aug 13, 2008 11:40 AM CDT

Trump Claims Firm Invaded Privacy By Posting Name on Website

Real estate mogul and reality TV personality Donald Trump is continuing his battle against his former lawyers, this time with a $5 million suit claiming they have violated his privacy by using his name on its website and talking about representing him during media interviews. Trump has sued again, this…

Aug 12, 2008 10:36 AM CDT

Most Plaintiffs Who Reject Settlement Offers Do Worse at Trial

The gamble of going to trial doesn’t pay off for most plaintiffs, according to a study of more than 2,000 civil suits from 2002 to 2005. Sixty-one percent of plaintiffs who turned down settlement offers ended up faring worse at trial, according to a New York Times story on the…

Aug 11, 2008 11:49 AM CDT

Kansas Settles ‘Kiss and Tell’ Teen Sex Reporting Case

The Center for Reproductive Rights and the state of Kansas have agreed to a $475,000 settlement of a lawsuit prompted by a sweeping 2003 attorney general opinion that required health clinics, especially abortion clinics, to report incidents of teen sex. In 2006, the center won a restraining order in federal…

Aug 8, 2008 2:19 PM CDT