Business Development

Lawyer who filed ‘multiplicity of suits’ over use of his skyline photo is ordered to pay $22K

An Indiana lawyer who filed copyright infringement suits against hundreds of people for using his photos of the Indianapolis skyline has been ordered to pay $22,000 in attorney fees for suing a wrong defendant. U.S. District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt of Indianapolis ordered lawyer Richard Bell of McCordsville to pay…

Aug 31, 2016 9:26 AM CDT

Guardian ad litem bills gay couple $100K for report questioning surrogacy

A same-sex married couple who hoped to become parents of a third child with the help of a surrogate mother are facing $400,000 in legal expenses after a guardian ad litem questioned the financial arrangement and a judge refused to approve it. The legal costs include “an astounding” $100,000 billed…

Jul 27, 2016 7:30 AM CDT

Former Nixon Peabody associate is awarded $266K in suit claiming bonus underpayment

A former associate at Nixon Peabody who claimed Nixon Peabody underpaid his bonus has been awarded nearly $266,000. The lawyer, Noah Doolittle, had claimed that his bonus of $75,000 for bringing in a key client was too low, and that he was entitled to a promised bonus of 5 percent…

Jul 15, 2016 11:59 AM CDT

7th Circuit limits attorney fees in lawsuit against faxing lawyer to percentage of actual claims

Class-action lawyers who sued on behalf of accountants who received unsolicited legal newsletters aren’t entitled to fees based on the total $4.2 million in funds that is available to claimants, a federal appeals court has ruled. Instead the lawyers are entitled to fees based on the number of accountants who…

Jul 12, 2016 2:16 PM CDT

Sharing fees with a lawyer outside the firm is OK as long as certain ethics rules are followed

One of the many stories about Huey P. Long—the legendary "Kingfish" who reigned over Louisiana politics during the 1920s and '30s—goes like this: When the future governor and U.S. senator sat for his oral bar exam in 1915, he faced questioning from noted admiralty lawyer George Terriberry, who asked him at one point what he knew about admiralty and maritime law. "Nothing at all," answered Long.

Jul 1, 2016 2:30 AM CDT

Third-party financing is growing, and lawyers are big players

Lawyers have used a lot of bad words to describe litigation funding over the years—words such as champerty and maintenance. These and other terms were created hundreds of years ago to describe third parties who finance litigation for personal gain.

Jul 1, 2016 2:00 AM CDT

9th Circuit OKs legal fees in failed suit over school bus converted to look like Spanish galleon

A school bus converted to a replica 16th-century Spanish galleon and used to transport attendees, hold weddings and provide a stage for poetry readings at events like Nevada’s Burning Man festival wasn’t a protected artwork under a federal statute. That’s what a federal district court judge decided on summary judgment…

Jun 9, 2016 3:40 PM CDT

Court says criminal defendants should be allowed to pay lawyers with ‘untainted’ funds

When the government brings charges against criminal suspects, it often seizes their assets, a move that can cripple a defendant's ability to pay for a legal defense.

Jun 1, 2016 2:30 AM CDT

Lawyer can appeal sanction order though fine has been paid by her employer, Posner opinion says

A former prosecutor appealing a sanctions order has standing, though the fine has already been paid, but she loses on the merits, a federal appeals court has ruled. The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled (PDF) on Monday in an appeal by Mary McClellan, a former assistant state’s…

May 25, 2016 9:19 AM CDT

Utah Supreme Court strikes down attorney fee schedule in workers’ comp cases

The Utah Supreme Court has struck down an attorney fee schedule for workers’ compensation cases and the law that authorized it. The court ruled on Wednesday in a case challenging the sliding-scale fees and a fee cap established by the Utah Labor Commission. The Legal Profession Blog has highlights from…

May 20, 2016 11:09 AM CDT

Company sued by EEOC can collect attorney fees absent a ruling on the merits, Supreme Court rules

A company sued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission may be able to collect attorney fees even when there is no ruling on the merits, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Thursday in a unanimous opinion. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote the opinion in a case that interprets a Title…

May 19, 2016 10:33 AM CDT

Lawyer is censured over $71K legal bill that included $30K in interest

The Wyoming Supreme Court has publicly censured a Cheyenne lawyer who charged a client $30,000 in finance charges on an unpaid legal bill of $41,000. The court adopted a report by the state bar’s Board of Professional Responsibility and censured (PDF) lawyer Bruce Asay on May 11 in connection with…

May 18, 2016 6:15 AM CDT

Coffeemaker win lacks perk for lawyer who asked for $180K in fees but got $6,800

Plaintiff Pamella Montgomery still gets the $250 settlement she was promised after a more than two-year legal battle with Kraft Foods Global Inc. and Starbucks Corp. over her purchase of a single-serve coffee maker. But the Michigan woman’s lawyer is receiving $6,800 in attorney fees and costs rather than the…

May 16, 2016 5:02 PM CDT

Top hourly rates for some BigLaw partners have reached $2K, survey finds

“More than a handful” of U.S. companies are now paying a top hourly rate of $2,000 to partners at BigLaw firms, a survey says. Results released Wednesday by BTI Consulting Group show that billable rates for some elite lawyers reached this benchmark last year, reports the Am Law Daily (sub.…

May 13, 2016 10:55 AM CDT

9th Circuit removes judge who slashed attorney fees from BarBri antitrust class action

A trial judge cannot simply cut by 70 percent the requested $1.9 million attorney fee award in a winning antitrust class action without providing a detailed explanation why he did so, a federal appeals court has ruled. A Wednesday opinion (PDF) by the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of…

May 12, 2016 2:00 PM CDT