U.S. District Judge Real Awards this Amount for Over 3 Years of Work.
If you have read our “In the News” category (which you can search at our home page by using the search function on the left hand side), you know we have reported on McGuireWoods efforts to recover legal fees as class counsel in the BAR/BRI litigation. Well, another part of this continuing saga has come to rest.
Last year, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the settlement in the case, but reversed U.S. District Judge Manuel Real’s decision on incentive payments to class representatives. Judge Real, on remand, decided no fees should be awarded based upon the firm violating California professional conduct rules in failing to notify other class members about the incentive award feature of the retention agreement.
McGuireWoods, which had about $5.6 million in fees and more than $1.25 million in expenses into the case, moved for reconsideration of the “no fee” ruling. Recently, Judge Real did award the firm $500,000 in fees for the July 19, 2007-September 10, 2010 period in a decision read from the bench in connection with the reconsideration motion.
According to a September 28, 2010 post by Amanda Bronstad, the roller-coaster ride isn’t over yet. McGuireWoods is disappointed at the recent ruling and will appeal the decision to the Ninth Circuit. So, stay tuned for more in this modern courtroom drama involving the essence of our blog—attorney’s fees.