Business Development

Law Firm Loses Debt Collection Case; Plaintiff’s Attorney to Seek 6-Figure Fee

A federal judge has ruled against a New York law firm in a hard-fought case over its debt-collection practices, finding after a bench trial that Upton Cohen & Slamowitz conducted a “superficial” review that didn’t meet the standard required for a collection letter from an attorney. Section 1692(e) of the…

Oct 8, 2009 7:12 PM CDT

Suits for Unpaid Legal Fees in Top 10 for Stupidity, Lawyer Says

A lawyer who represents a company sued for unpaid legal fees says such claims aren’t a good idea. Lawyer Warren Trazenfeld represents Whitney Information Network, sued by the Florida law firm Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler, allegedly for failing to pay more than $400,000 in legal bills, the Daily Business Review reports.…

Sep 30, 2009 12:06 PM CDT

Citigroup GC Has No Sympathy for Law Firms Seeking Premium Fees

The general counsel for Citigroup says his in-house legal department has been battered by the economic downturn, leaving him with little sympathy for law firm arguments for premium fees. General counsel Michael Helfer, a panelist at an event sponsored by Bisnow, said Citigroup’s in-house legal department has shrunk by about…

Sep 28, 2009 1:52 PM CDT

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…

Sep 25, 2009 8:44 PM CDT

D.C. Court of Appeals Details Rules for Escrowing Up-Front Legal Fee

In one of the few decisions that addresses the proper handling of legal fees paid up front by the client before they are earned, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals held that they should be escrowed in the attorney’s trust account—and explains the rules for doing so. At issue…

Sep 24, 2009 9:57 PM CDT

Freed from Prison & Awarded $4M, Exonerated Man Fights $1M Legal Bill

Freed from a Texas prison and awarded $4 million in compensation after DNA evidence showed that he didn’t commit the sexual assaults for which he served 24 years, 51-year-old Steven Phillips is now fighting his $1 million legal bill. His new legal counsel is asking a state-court judge in Dallas…

Sep 23, 2009 4:37 PM CDT

Judge Strikes DuPont Defenses in $60M Benlate Litigation Due to Discovery Fraud

Saying that DuPont engaged in “a deliberate scheme to interfere” with the court’s rulings during more than a decade of litigation over damage allegedly done to Ecuadorian shrimp beds by the company’s Benlate fungicide, a Florida judge has struck the chemical manufacturer’s defenses in two companion cases. Attorney Robert McKee…

Sep 17, 2009 10:13 PM CDT

Mayer Brown and Reed Smith to Roll Out Fixed-Fee Plans for Corporate Clients

In what may be a signpost to the future for other BigLaw firms, two major legal partnerships are planning to implement fixed-fee payment structures for corporate clients. Mayer Brown is working on a plan to offer fixed fees for all transactional work, and Reed Smith has set up a committee…

Sep 17, 2009 5:30 PM CDT

Law Firm Sues D.C. Area Court Clerk, Claims $73K in Unpaid Fees

A Virginia law firm has sued the court clerk in Fairfax, claiming it is owed $73,000 for work in dozens of juvenile cases. Lawyers Michael Arif and Matthew Greene said they sued after the court clerk failed to respond to repeated requests for information about the unpaid vouchers, some that…

Sep 16, 2009 2:09 PM CDT

Pfizer Wins Injunction Banning N.Y. Man’s ‘Viva Viagra’ Missile Stunt

A federal judge has sided with Pfizer in an unusual trademark dispute over its erectile disfunction drug Viagra, granting a permanent injunction banning a New York man from towing a 25-foot missile replica emblazoned with “Viva Viagra” in front of the drug manufacturer’s Manhattan world headquarters. In addition to U.S.…

Sep 10, 2009 4:57 PM CDT

Judge Hits ‘Remora’ Lawyers, ‘Emphatically’ Turns Down Fee Request

A federal judge in Minneapolis didn’t hide his disdain when he turned down a request for $225,000 in attorney fees by lawyers representing objectors in a class action settlement. The lawyers had argued against payment of $110 million in attorney fees as part of a settlement in shareholder litigation against…

Sep 8, 2009 2:41 PM CDT

Stanford Receiver Defends $27M Bill Against SEC’s ‘Shrill Objections’

In an unusual public battle over a court-appointed receiver’s $27 million bill, attorney Ralph Janvey is telling the feds that cleaning up an alleged $7 billion bank Ponzi scheme of which Texas billionaire R. Allen Stanford is the accused mastermind costs money. In a filing last night in federal district…

Sep 2, 2009 6:22 PM CDT

The Switch to Smaller

Less cost, more experience lure giants to Lilliput Legal

Sep 2, 2009 1:50 AM CDT

CIA Reportedly Will Pay Legal Fees of Officers in Interrogation Abuse Probe

The CIA will make sure officers investigated for interrogation abuses have legal representation, according to a senior intelligence official. The unnamed official told the Washington Post that CIA Director Leon Panetta “will do everything he can to ensure that anyone who needs legal representation has it, whether they have liability…

Aug 28, 2009 12:07 PM CDT

WilmerHale Leader Is the Latest Fixed-Fees Convert

Law firms shouldn’t have to be dragged kicking and screaming into the world of fixed-fee billing. Firm leaders would do well to embrace the economic benefits of fixed fees, according to William Lee, the co-managing partner of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr. The alternative billing arrangement “is an idea…

Aug 24, 2009 1:59 PM CDT