Judge Gives $750K to Plaintiff's Attorneys in Open Government Lawsuit
A Florida judge has awarded $750,000 in legal fees to the attorneys who pursued a hard-fought and much-watched citizen case that sought to hold officials in the town of Venice responsible for adhering to the requirements of state open government law.
The city spent more than $600,000 to defend itself in the 16-month litigation, bringing its total legal fees, after Circuit Judge Robert Bennett’s award to the plaintiff’s lawyers, close to $1.4 million, reports the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Bennett did not agree to a multiplier sought by attorney Andrea Mogensen, which could have upped the ante considerably on the legal bill, nor did he award the $200,000 she sought for the time spent fighting the legal bill battle for three months.
Plaintiff Anthony Lorenzo accused Venice city council members of violating the state’s Sunshine Law by illegally holding meetings via e-mail. The case settled earlier this year, but the parties left the issue of legal fees for Bennett to decide.
Attorney Greg Thomas, whose Tampa law firm represents the newspaper, calls the case “the most hotly litigated, cutting-edge case” on open government litigated in the state for a decade, reports the Herald-Tribune in an earlier article on the disputed legal bill.
Earlier coverage:
Venice Views (Sarasota Herald-Tribune): “From the archives: How the Venice Sunshine case began”
