Around the Blawgosphere: Victorious Lawyers in Heller Case Got Chump Change, Bloggers Say

Reeling over Fees Decision In 2008, small-firm lawyer Alan Gura prevailed at the U.S. Supreme Court in District of Columbia v. Heller, which struck down D.C.’s handgun ban. The same year, Gura and the other lawyers for Heller sought more than $3 million for the work they put in over…

Jan 13, 2012 2:58 PM CST

Ex-Lawyer Opts Out of Class Action over Hybrid Mileage, Goes to Small Claims Court

A former lawyer is going to small claims court today in an attempt to win damages in a suit that claims her 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid didn’t deliver on promised mileage. The suit by Heather Peters says she never did get 50 miles per gallon as promised, and now that…

Jan 3, 2012 12:48 PM CST

Man Charged in Wife’s Murder Can Use Retirement Funds to Pay Defense Lawyer, Judge Rules

Charged with first-degree murder in the slaying of his wife last month, a Wisconsin man has been granted permission by a judge to withdraw $37,000 from a retirement account to pay his defense lawyer. Earlier this month, a Fond du Lac Circuit Court judge restrained Jason E. Anderson, 35, from…

Dec 21, 2011 6:12 PM CST

Big Payday for Shareholder Suit Lawyers: Del. Chancery Court Awards $285M Attorney’s Fee

A near-record verdict for Southern Peru Copper Co. in a Delaware shareholder derivative suit has resulted in a monster payday for the company’s counsel. The $285 million earned by Pennsylvania-based Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check and Prickett, Jones & Elliott of Wilmington, Del., may be the highest amount ever awarded…

Dec 19, 2011 7:34 PM CST

Government Work: Law Firms Answer the Call of Cash-Strapped Officials

Dec 1, 2011 8:30 AM CST

Ethics 20/20 Commission Issues White Paper About Alternative Litigation Financing

Dec 1, 2011 7:40 AM CST

Sealing the Deal: How to Negotiate Fee Agreements

You’ve identified a target client, made a good connection, and they say they want to hire you. But no fee agreement has been signed yet. ABA Journal Podcast moderator Stephanie Francis Ward discusses ways to ethically seal the deal, with lawyers from a variety of practice areas.

Nov 7, 2011 9:44 PM CST

Judge Orders Ogletree Deakins to Turn over Records in Billing Dispute, But Protects Privileged Info

Both sides are claiming victory after an Arizona judge ordered Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart to open its billing records in a dispute with Maricopa County. Judge John Buttrick ruled on Friday that the county had a right to audit Ogletree Deakins billing records, but the law firm did…

Oct 25, 2011 1:12 PM CDT

Outside Lawyer Censured for ‘Intimate Contact’ with Detroit Mayor While Monitoring City Police

A Washington, D.C., lawyer has been censured for having “intimate contact” one night with Detroit’s then-mayor while she was serving as independent police monitor for the city. Sheryl Robinson Wood said during a disciplinary hearing that she considered the incident a moral and personal lapse and later realized it also…

Oct 22, 2011 1:11 AM CDT

Poker Players File Clawback Claim Against Cozen O’Connor, Seek $2M in Legal Fees

Some 200,000 poker players are seeking $2 million that Cozen O’Connor allegedly earned in legal fees from clients related to an online company now said by the feds to have been involved in a Ponzi scheme. The plaintiffs contend the law firm should disgorge the money because it knew or…

Oct 20, 2011 10:50 PM CDT

Wis. Bill Would Limit Contingent Attorney Fees to Three Times Plaintiff’s Damages

A bill under consideration by Wisconsin lawmakers would limit attorney fees in most contingency cases to three times the amount of the plaintiff’s compensatory damages, according to the State Bar of Wisconsin. The state senate’s judiciary committee is conducting a hearing today on the proposed law, which has been introduced…

Oct 19, 2011 5:25 PM CDT

Judge Slashes $4.7M Fee Request in Prius Headlight Case, Calls Amount ‘Highly Unreasonable’

Lawyers who obtained a class-action settlement valued at more than $3.8 million in a Prius headlight suit won’t get anywhere near the $4.7 million they requested in attorney fees, according to the federal judge presiding in the case. U.S. District Judge Manuel Real of Los Angeles called the request “highly…

Oct 18, 2011 12:07 PM CDT

LA Times: After $20M in Legal Bills, Dodgers Owner OKs $130M Settlement with Wife in Divorce Case

After racking up more than $20 million in legal bills, the owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers has reportedly reached a $130 million settlement in his divorce case. In exchange for the payment from Frank McCourt, his wife, Jamie McCourt will relinquish her claim to any ownership rights in the…

Oct 18, 2011 12:20 AM CDT

Was BigLaw Firm’s Contingency Agreement a Conflict? Judge Rejects Disqualification Bid Citing Deal

Time is on King & Spalding’s side in a $100 million suit against a construction management company on behalf of a Georgia school district. Judge Clarence Seeliger refused to disqualify the law firm, saying the cost of replacing King & Spalding five years into the litigation would be “prohibitive,” the…

Oct 14, 2011 3:17 PM CDT

Billboard Company Client Sues Akin Gump Over Its Advice on ‘Supergraphic’ Signs

World Wide Rush, a former client of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, has filed a legal malpractice lawsuit against the firm for dispensing advice that WWR says led to the company’s demise. WWR retained Akin Gump in 2008 to represent it in the so-called Battle over the Blanketing of…

Oct 11, 2011 6:44 PM CDT