Court Slashes $25K From $30K Attorneys Fees Request Where Plaintiff Loses Most Claims (ND IL)

After winning one out of nine claims, the plaintiff – a recently fired loan officer – sued to recover about $30K in attorneys’ fees under the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act (IWPCA) from his former employer.  Awarding the plaintiff just a fraction (just over $5K) of his claimed fees, the Northern District in Palar v. …

Failure to Disclose Claim in Bankruptcy Torpedoes Later Injury Suit

What happens if  (a) you get injured (and you aren’t at fault and have a claim against the person who injured you) after you file for bankruptcy but (b) before you get a discharge and (c) you don’t inform the bankruptcy court of this claim?  That’s the question examined in Schoup v. Gore, 2014 IL App (4th) 130911 (4th …

Seventh Circuit Upholds Slashing Of Over $300K In Attorneys’ Fees Based On $2,000 Jury Verdict

An easy to parrot, hard to apply attorney fee maxim involves the “prevailing party” standard.  To get attorneys fees awarded under a statutory or contractual fee-shifting provision, you must “prevail” or win the case.  So what happens when your win is a proverbial Pyrrhic one?  That is, you win the lawsuit but get only a fraction of the money …