In The News

Again Illustrating that Attorney’s Fees are the Tail that Wags the Litigation Dog . . .      Under the heading, “Pleasanton reaches settlement over housing cap lawsuit”, Robert Jordan reports in the Contra Costa Times that Pleasanton has reached a tentative settlement that will, if finalized and approved, obligate Pleasanton to pay $1.9M in attorney’s […]

Beach Boys Ninth Circuit Memorandum Affirmance.      Well, on this one, founding Beach Boy Mike Love appealed an award of attorney’s fees to Sanctuary Records Group after he lost a right to publicity dispute governed by English law that does not recognize such a right. In Love v. Sanctuary Records Group, Ltd., Case Nos. 08-55035/08-55973

City of L.A. Ponies Up An Additional $550,000 in Attorney’s Fees and $380,000 in Interest on Jury Award/Fee Award to Two White Fire Captains.      You may have seen media coverage of the 2004 firehouse incident in which Los Angeles firefighter Tennie Pierce, who was known as “Big Dog,” was fed dog food in his

  Bill Allowing for Capped Contingency Fee Died in LA House of Representatives …. However, There is Hope—See “The Great BP Coffee Spill” Video.      In our May 29, 2010 post, we did report on some contingency attorney fee caps that were making it difficult to respond to the BP spill incident. Louisiana is ensnarled

Opinions Seem to Vary Among Orange County Attorneys Representing Districts.      In the June 19, 2010 edition of The Orange County Register, Annie Burris, Teri Sforza and Tony Saavedra have written an article entitled “Trustee on transparency crusade.” Among other things, it explores the topic of whether legal billings to Orange County school districts are

Results of the Audit Are Due Next Month.      As reported by Jeff Overley in his article “Newport to examine its rising legal costs” in the May 30, 2010 edition of The Orange County Register, the City of Newport Beach has decided to audit its litigation costs and fees.      In the past decade, annual

Florida Politics: BP Petroleum Spill/AG Contingency Lawyer Cap.      We know we would like this one, when the article begins this way: “Nobody likes attorneys until they need one, and then they want the smartest, orneriest, hardest-line lawyer they can get.”       Well, the crimp in this for the Florida attorney general is recent legislation

Uncivil Rights      A lot of fervor and controversy has swirled over Arizona’s passage of a new immigration statute which authorizes lawsuits by “any state resident” against any official or agency of the state “or its political subdivisions” that adopts any policy “that limits or restricts the enforcement of federal immigration laws . . .

  Wells Fargo Advisors LLC Ordered to Pay $948,000 in Fees/Costs to Stifel Nicolaus & Co., Inc.      Wells Fargo Advisors LLC has been ordered by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. arbitration panel to pay $633,000 in attorney’s fees to Stifel Nicolaus & Co., Inc. and $282,000 in fees to Chris Nielsen, a former