Federal Judge Slashes ‘Unreasonable’ Biglaw Fee Request

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The good news for Biglaw firm Gibson Dunn is that they won attorneys’ fees (or attorneys fees or … whatever) for their client, Peak One Investments, in a lawsuit brought by startup Social Life Network. The bad news is the award is for far less than the elite firm actually charges.

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As reported by Reuters, U.S. District Judge Darrin Gayles found Gibson Dunn’s rates were “unreasonable” in the local South Florida market:

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The fee ruling from Gayles upheld a report from a federal magistrate who said the rates from Gibson Dunn were above the “prevailing” amount in South Florida. Defining a market rate is a threshold question in fee disputes.

“The court’s task in a fee petition is not simply to award what a local client could be willing to pay for a given superstar lawyer,” Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Edwin Torres wrote in his report.

So… how much *do* they charge over at Gibson? The partners on the case, Helgi Walker out of the Washington, D.C. office and Barry Goldsmith in New York, bill out at $1,785 and $1,815 an hour, respectively. But the firm wasn’t even seeking those eye popping rate — they took a haircut in the fee request, asking for only — lol, yes, only — $900/hr. However, even that proved too rich for Miami, as the court only approved a $700/hr fee.

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For their part, Gibson Dunn appears to have a very philosophical approach, focusing on the positives:

Walker in a statement on Wednesday said “the headline here is that we were successful in getting our client awarded almost $150,000 in fees for the plaintiff’s inappropriate and meritless suit.”

The statement said it was “not surprising that a national firm’s rates might be slightly reduced in a context where local market comparisons are being made.”

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And, fundamentally it is a good result for Gibson’s client. It’s also a reminder for those stuck in the Biglaw echo chamber that not everyone is willing to pay for those services.

Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Mastodon @[email protected].

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Biglaw, Billable hour rates, Gibson Dunn