After 46 Years, Lawyer Submits His Bill in Desegregation Case: Nearly $10M
It’s been 46 years since lawyer Marion Overton White filed a desegregation suit against the St. Landry Parish School Board, and now he’s submitted his bill. White is seeking nearly $10 million in fees.
The U.S. Justice Department settled the case with the school board in March, 2theAdvocate reports. White is seeking $9.89 million for more than 14,000 hours of work on the case.
The Opelousas lawyer requested $350 an hour, multiplied by two because of the complexity and length of the case, the story says. Lawyers in another desegregation case involving a different parish school board requested the same fee—$700 an hour—last year.
In court filings, White said the fee request was reasonable. “The whole community owes attorney White a debt of gratitude for his steadfast faith in the legal system that helped to move this state and nation away from the hatred of racial apartheid as it existed when this case began,” he said. “The failure to award reasonable attorney’s fees would be a travesty of justice.”
