attorneys' fees

Texas Courts Move Closer to Federal Standard in Proving Up Attorneys' Fees

11/04/21

Federal court practitioners, particularly those appearing in bankruptcy court, are familiar with the requirements of the lodestar method for proving up attorneys' fees. Under Johnson v. Georgia Highway Express, Inc., 488 F.2d 714 (5th Cir. 1974) and subsequent cases, attorneys were used to producing contemporaneous time sheets in sufficient detail to describe the work performed and the rate charged.

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A Story of Lawyers Behaving Badly

04/01/20
Here, the Court grapples with an inheritance—the latest chapter of a litigation odyssey that began over a decade ago in a different domain.
Adv. No.
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Devonshire PGA Holdings Opinion – Payments for Prior Representation

04/15/16

In a 21 page decision released April 15, 2016, Judge Sontchi of the Delaware Bankruptcy Court ruled on summary judgment regarding a claim submitted by attorneys related to previous litigation.  Judge Sontchi’s opinion is available here (the “Opinion”).  The Opinion was issued in Devonshire PGA Holdings LLC, Case No. 13-12460.

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Creative Lawyers Thwarted in ASARCO Workaround Attempts

02/27/16
One of the panels at the recent Fifth Circuit Bench-Bar Conference featured Judge Craig Gargotta and Stephen Rosenblatt discussing fee issues raised by Barron & Newburger, P.C. v. Texas Skyline, Ltd. and Baker Botts v. ASARCO.  While I was personally interested in hearing the discussion about my own case, the really interesting part involved what creative lawyers are doing to try to work around the ASARCO decision.    
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Lessons from Chapter 13 – When is 8% Not Really 8%

01/23/15

In ruling on a very unfortunate situation (more on that below), Judge Shannon issued an opinion on July 24, 2014 in the Aro bankruptcy, holding that a state court decision concerning the validity of a lien cannot be challenged in Bankruptcy Court.  In the opinion in this case issued on January 22, 2015 (the “Opinion”), Judge Shannon analyzed the value of the lien and applicable interest rates.  The Opinion is available here.

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Unsecured and Undersecured Creditors Not Entitled to Post-Petition Attorneys' Fees and Costs

07/25/13

On July 6, 2007, the court in In re Electric Machinery Enterprises, Inc., ___ B.R. ___, 2007 WL 3031445 (Bkrtcy.M.D.Fla.)(Williamson, J.) issued its decision holding that unsecured creditors are not entitled to collect post-petition attorneys' fees, costs, and other similar charges even if there is an underlying contractual right to them.

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