HSBC
settled
a
case
with
plaintiff
David
Rubin
over
claims
it
improperly
denied
disputed
charges
on
a
credit
card
for
$250,000
plus
attorney
fees
and
costs.
Trying
to
determine
those
attorney
fees
resulted
in
Eastern
District
of
New
York
Judge
Frederic
Block
railing
against
the
district’s
“blind
adherence
to
outdated
precedent”
(and
using
poetry
to
make
his
point).
Block
wrote
that
how
the
standard
for
attorney
fees
were
derived
was
a
“mystery”
lacking
a
“well-articulated
rationale.”
Noting
that
trying
to
determine
what
a
“reasonable
client”
would
pay
is
“a
lofty
standard,
but
it
is
fantastical.”
And
he
wondered,
“How
is
anyone
able
to
calculate
what
that
mystical
reasonable
paying
client
was
willing
to
pay?”
As
reported
by
Law.com,
Rubin’s
attorneys
request
$728,998
in
fees,
with
hourly
rates
for
the
attorneys
of
$1,185,
$795,
$760,
and
$445;
$325
for
a
law
clerk;
and
$125
for
a
paralegal.
HSBC’s
attorneys
cited
Zaslavsky
v.
Weltman,
Weinberg
&
Reiss,
which
set
the
rates
at
$300-$450
per
hour
for
partners,
$200-$300
per
hour
for
senior
associates,
$100-$200
per
hour
for
junior
associates,
and
$70-$100
per
hour
for
paralegals.
But
those
“rates
have
no
currency”
according
to
Block.
Instead,
Block
noted
“times
have
changed,”
and
settled
on
the
following
standard
for
fees:
$450-$650
for
partners,
$300-$450
for
senior
associates,
$150-$300
for
junior
associates,
and
$100-$150
for
paralegals.
Block’s
new
standard
netted
Rubin’s
attorneys
$550,506.50.
Read
the
full
decision
below.
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
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her.
Feel
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