Attorneys Fees Appeal : Broward Case at Palm Beach Appeals Court

If you are involved in a lawsuit in Broward County or Palm Beach County, you may want to read this April 16, 2014 opinion of the Palm Beach Appeals Court.  This case involved attorneys fees from a Ft. Lauderdale lawsuit:  a law firm claiming it was owed money and which won on “summary judgment” against 1 defendant but not against 2 others.  What is also important about this case is that the law firm’s clients had 15 days to object to any discrepancies in the bill for legal services. Since I’ve described attorneys fees as the “X Factor” in Palm Beach probates and estate disputes, then beneficiaries, heirs and family members who inherit from Palm Beach property or estates may want to read this opinion from the 4th District Court of Appeal, which also hears appeals for Palm Beach and Ft. Lauderdale estate, probate & guardianship matters.

Attorneys Fees :  Ft. Lauderdale to Palm Beach Gardens

Q :    Why is this recent Palm Beach appeals case important for probate litigation?

A :    Because unlike most civil lawsuits (non probate lawsuits) in Ft. Lauderdale or Palm Beach, probate lawsuits provide for the payment of attorneys fees to the winning side.

• No guarantees; and not in every inheritance lawsuit or probate dispute.
• BUT, ask your probate litigator about fee shifting statutes which can put you on the hook to pay the other side’s attorneys fees and costs if you lose.
• And, there are Probate Code statutes which could decrease or eliminate your inheritance.

In this recent case, there were multiple parties who the law firm had a legal services contract with.   While it’s an interesting summary judgment case, there was also a 15 day “objection period” in the legal services contract.   Previously, in another Palm Beach appeals case, the court held a 30 day time frame for a client to object to a law firm’s invoices as reasonable…. in part because that was what was agreed to in the legal services contract between the lawyer and the client.   So, check your legal services contract.   Or ask your probate lawyer:  there are a lot of very good ones from West Palm Beach, to Delray Beach, to Boca Raton to Broward.  Good luck.

If you’d like to read the entire legal opinion of this Palm Beach attorneys fee case for free, here’s the link:  http://4dca.org/opinions/April%202014/04-16-14/4D12-4147.op.pdf