Lawyers who successfully represented the homeless in a case to secure future rights and reimbursements for property seized and destroyed will receive $800,000 in compensation. That is roughly $1 million less than had been submitted by the lawyers.
Judge Morrison England, Jr., rejected the majority of the claims, citing poor record keeping and unusually high hourly rates. According to an article, two of the attorneys requested a $550 per hour rate, but England found that similarly experienced lawyers were receiving $400 per hour. He reduced their hourly compensation to that level.
Additionally, billing records were not kept on an ongoing basis while the lawyers were working on the case. Instead, they reconstructed their records after the fact, a decision that England said called into question the reliability of the records.
The lawyers had sought reimbursements for expenses that included press releases and press conferences. In all, the Court approved $37,301.58 in expenses.
Read the full story at the Sacramento Bee.