Bankruptcy Court Approves Request of Madoff Trustee and Law Firm for $15,000,000 in Attorney's Fees.
The New York Law Journal reports that Southern District of New York Bankruptcy Judge Burton R. Lifland has approved a request of Irving H. Picard, the liquidating trustee of Bernard Madoff's investment firm, and his team of lawyers, for approximately $15 million in interim counsel fees. Not a trifling sum for four month's work.
Governor Schwarzenegger Signs Legislation to Prohibit Public Entities from Recovering Attorney's Fees From Individuals Who Sue to Enforce the State's Open Government Laws.
The California Progress Report reports that the Governor has signed SB 786, a law "that would prohibit public entities from recovering attorney's fees from individuals who sue to enforce the State's open government laws, specifically the California Public Records Act (CPRA), Bagley-Keene Open Meetings Act, and the Ralph M. Brown Act.
The article quotes Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco/San Mateo), the bill's author: "SB 786 will ensure that laws designed to ensure free speech are not used to silence those who seek access to government proceedings and documents." The law is intended to correct the abuse of California's anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) law by government bodies. Anti-SLAPP law was intended to prevent the abuse of defamation lawsuits by big corporations and developers, who used lawsuits to stifle free speech; the law was not intended to stifle efforts by citizens to make government more transparent.
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