To avoid this economic bar to court access, many contracts contain a prevailing party
attorney's fee clause that requires the loser to pay the winner's
attorney's fees in addition to any principal damages.
We hold that when parties enter into a contract and litigation later ensues over that contract,
attorney's fees may be recovered under a prevailing-party
attorney's fee provision contained therein even though the contract is rescinded or held to be unenforceable.
a reasonable
attorney's fee as part of the costs." (4)
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit vacates the $13 million
attorney's fee award and remands.
Justice Rehnquist, writing for the majority, reached this conclusion by interpreting certain statutes with similar language to the Clean Air Act through the lens of the American Rule, under which a successful party generally need not pay the unsuccessful party's
attorney's fee. (180) Specifically, the majority in Ruckelshaus found it dispositive that other federal statutes contained language permitting a total departure from the American Rule if a party "'represents an interest which would substantially contribute to a fair determination of the issues,' even if the participant's views were rejected." (181) However, section 307(f) of the Clean Air Act contained no such language regarding a total departure from the American Rule.
The Court first looked to the language of the Erisa statue, which provides that "the court in its discretion may allow a reasonable
attorney's fee and costs ...
reasonable
attorney's fee to the prevailing party as part of the
The parties, Forge LLC and Pearson, executed a $75,739.91 promissory note that provided for 10 percent interest, a 5 percent late fee and reasonable
attorney's fees. The note also gave Turner, a CPA, the authority to confess judgment.
The decision overturns a 2016 Court of Appeals ruling and holds that a Buncombe County Superior Court judge didn't exceed his authority by approving
attorney's fees for a retroactive Industrial Commission award to a bartender injured on the job.
Determining the correct treatment of settlement and litigation award payments is a multistep process requiring the determination of the character of the payment and the nature of the claim that gave rise to it; whether the payment constitutes an item of gross income; if the payment relates to an employment claim, whether the payment is wages for employment tax purposes; and the appropriate reporting for the payment of any
attorney's fees.
To prevent their exclusion in potential litigation, the merger clause should specifically identify these documents as being components of a single transaction.<br />The merger clause is an overlooked but important tool that confirms the parties' obligations and discourages costly litigation.<br />Attorney's fee provisions<br />Clients commonly and often mistakenly believe that
attorney's fees are awarded to the prevailing party in a lawsuit.
Specially, the Minnesota federal court judge ruled that Octane is entitled to $1,633,333 in
attorney's fees and court costs of $144,697.