Quantum meruit (Latin derivation: “as much as he deserved”) has repeatedly saved the day in situations where my client has performed services for a defendant but there is a contractual defect (such as missing price terms or an unclear completion date)that makes suing under a breach of contract impossible. Time and again, quantum meruit has proved to be a valuable fallback …
Category Archives: Trial Practice
How to Enforce Settlement Agreements In Federal Court
I once represented a plaintiff in a Federal question case (based on the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act) that settled with the defendant making installment payments over time. In the settlement agreement, I took great pains to emphasize that if the defendant missed a payment, I could immediately move to reinstate the case and accelerate the settlement amount plus fees …
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Recovering Litigation Costs in Illinois State Court – What About Westlaw Research?
In a small dollar case, a plaintiff’s recoverable “costs” typically include filing fees and service fees. See Household Int’l v. Liberty Mutual, 195 Ill. 2d 578 (2001). This amount is usually negligible (usually less than $500) and not worth fighting over. However, where a fee-shifting provision in a contract provides for prevailing party “litigation expenses” or “costs of …