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 passed, effective June 1 of this year, which caps contingency fees at $50 million on contract work for the Office of the Attorney General. Of course, this is a real bummer given the BP Petroleum oil spill fiasco.
However, before the deadline, prominent Florida attorney Fred Levin filed a class action lawsuit in Pensacola federal court over the BP spill. The attorney general, come July 1, may not be able to afford the Levin-headed “Dream Team” on this case. Luckily, the Florida governor can, through legislation that allowed Mr. Levin’s court case to go forward.
For more on this one, see Paul Flemming’s article “Recent cap on legal fees means AG can’t hire the best to sue BP,” available for reading in the May 21, 2010 posting on news-press.com.
Variety Intends to Seek SLAPP Fees After “SLAPPing” Iron Cross Filmmaker.
As reported by Matthew Belloni in a May 18, 2010 on-line post, Hollywood trade paper Variety won a SLAPP motion against Joshua Newton, the filmmaker behind “Iron Cross,” (see trailer) who sued the paper for printing a negative ad (after allegedly seducing him to pay ads and an awards season screening series for “Iron Cross”). Variety has indicated it will seek fee recovery against Mr. Newton, although its fee request will be less than $20,000.
Compare that to a Virginia man who sued Fox after appearing in “Borat” and then got SLAPPed out of the court. The Virginia man was ordered to pay more than $43,000 in fees. Ouch!
City of Huntington Beach Hit With $650,000 Adverse Fee Order in Senior Center Dispute.
An Orange County Superior Court judge recently ordered Huntington Beach to pay about $650,000 to Parks Legal Defense Fund, a group of residents who won a CEQA lawsuit involving a senior center the city wants to build in Central Park. The group of residents had asked for $995,000, but only a partial fee award was granted. It is unclear whether the award will be paid from the city’s general fund, given that the city has an expected $3 million budget gap for the next fiscal year. In December, the City Council voted to appeal the adverse merits decision (which likely means the fee award might be appealed also, with the city not needing to post a bond during the appeal).
See more on this developing story in Annie Burris’ May 26, 2010 article “H.B. must pay $650,000 for senior center suit,” available for reading at ocregister.com.
Stevie Wonder and Two Persons Awarded $325,525 in Fees in Ex-DJ Lawsuit.
Finally, the legendary Stevie Wonder and two KJLH employees were awarded $325,525 in attorney’s fees after claims brought by ex-KJLH disc jockey Clifton Winston were dismissed in a Los Angeles County Superior Court action. The lawsuit revolved around Mr. Winston’s apparent claims for defamation and emotional distress stemming from an April 18, 2007 radio broadcast of a voicemail from a woman who apparently implied that plaintiff had gotten her pregnant during an extramarital affair (although not specifically identifying Mr. Winston). Mr. Wonder’s company, Taxi Productions, Inc., operates the radio station airing the broadcasted email.
See more details in the May 27, 2010 post, “Wonder Awarded Lawyer’s Fees After Suit Dismissed,” which can be found at the cbs2.com website.