Clark v. Kizer

No. CIV S-87-1700 JFM (E.D. Cal. Apr. 6, 1993) ; Clearinghouse Number: 43105

Description

$1.2 Million Attorney Fees Awarded to Seven California Legal Services Programs in Statewide Class Action

Abstract

The court has awarded seven legal services programs a total of $1,249,021 in attorney fees in this class action in which plaintiffs successfully challenged California's failure to comply with federal law in the administration of the maternity and dental care programs under Medi-Cal. The court noted that plaintiffs' attorneys expended over 5,000 hours of attorney time and 925 hours of paralegal time on the four-year litigation, and they produced excellent results for plaintiff class. The court found counsel to have put together a team drawn from organizations statewide that litigated a complex and difficult case efficiently and with exceptional skill. In finding to be reasonable the number of hours plaintiffs claimed, the court also held that plaintiffs were entitled to include 12.94 hours spent at press conferences, given the magnitude of this litigation and the public need to know. The hourly rates that counsel requested, from $110 to $280 per hour for attorneys and $75 per hour for law clerks and paralegals, were well supported in the state market. Plaintiffs' counsel were also to receive $16,379 for expenses, mostly for travel.

Additional Information

Attorney Information
Plaintiffs represented by Richard Rothschild, Robert Newman, Western Center on Law and Poverty, 3535 W. Sixth St., Los Angeles, CA 90020, (213) 487-7211; Jane Perkins, Eugenie Mitchell, Joel Diringer, Ray Fuller, Anne Miller, Carole Harper, David Grabill, Tamara Dahn, Ellen Jacobs, Andrea Zigman, Ralph Abascal.
Docket Date
1993-04-06 00:00:00+00:00