Re: Attorney's Fees

Posted by poor lawyer (24.199.187.22) on August 21, 2002 at 15:38:38:

In Reply to: Attorney's Fees posted by Pat on August 21, 2002 at 14:46:20:

Generally, unless there is a statute saying otherwise, attorneys fees are not recoverable in a suit on a debt. However, if as part of a contract you agreed that attorneys fees were recoverable, then they could get those in that situation. I imagine that almost every credit card agreement includes a provision allowing the recovery of attorneys fees in the case the card user defaults.

Attorneys fees cannot be "whatever they charge." It must be a "reasonable" attorneys fees. It may still be steep, but it must be reasonable. The Rules of Professional Conduct for each state will define what a reasonable fee is, and it involves a number of factors. Perhaps the easiest indicator of a reasonable fee is the "customary fee charged in that locality for similiar legal services" i.e. what does everybody else charge?

Attorneys fees and the amount of fees can be challenged just as any other part of a case. They can be appealed just as any other part of a case, too.

poor lawyer, esq.

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