As reported by Martha Neil in her September 25, 2013 post in the on-line version of the ABA Journal, plaintiffs’ lawyer Terry Silva was awarded $50,418.75 in attorney’s fees and costs (including $1,743.75 for “fees on fees”) in a successful civil rights suit she and other plaintiffs pursed since 2010 over the wrongful confiscation of three dogs.
The civil rights case was based on the claim that the dogs were taken from plaintiffs by the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in violations of several constitutional rights.
Ms. Silva put in nearly 200 hours on the case at an hourly rate of $250, all deemed reasonable by U.S. District Judge Berle M. Schiller. The district judge nixed a request by the PSPCA for a $6,000 credit for veterinary bills, saying that would “reward Defendants from improperly confiscating Plaintiffs’ dogs.”
Our reaction — WOOF!
1901. Library of Congress.