Correspondence from Menefee to Derfner; Lawyers Answer Fee Questionnaire News Clipping

    BLACKSHER, MENEFEE & STEIN, P.A. 

ATTORNEYS AT LAW 

405 VAN ANTWERP BUILDING 

FP. O. BOX 1051 

MOBILE, ALABAMA 36633 

JAMES U. BLACKSHER TELEPHONE 

LARRY T. MENEFEE January 3 , 1985 (205) 433-2000 

GREGORY B. STEIN 

Armand Derfner, Esquire 
5520 33rd Street, N.W. 
Washington, D. C. 20015 

RE: Attorneys' Fees Survey 
  

Dear Armand: 

Please find enclosed a copy of the article that appeared 
in the Mobile Press Register concerning the survey I did 
on attorneys' fees. I don't know if it can be helpful 
concerning the Hatch efforts. 

I received a very nice letter from Robert Weil concerning 
his assistance in Major v. Treen. I think he is interested 
in these issues and could be of substantial help in 
congressional testimony on the Hatch Bill. TI think he 
should be encouraged to help us. 

  

Finally, defendants in Major have indicated that Jerris 
Leonard will be one of their expert witnesses. What can we 
find out about his rates and cases he has worked on and 
number of hours that have been expended? Please call me 
about this at your earliest convenience.. I will be glad 
for Lani to react to any of this also. 

Best regards and wishes for the new year. 

Sincerely, 

BLACKSHER, MENEFEE & STEIN, P.A. 

Lafry T. Mbnefee 
LTM:nwp 

ce Lani Guinier, Esquire  



  
Janu 2, 1985 
  [as 

Contents Copyrighted 1985 by The Mobile Register, Mobile, ~P 

  

Lawyers answer fee questionnaire 
A local survey shows fees 

charged by lawyers in civil 
litigation reflect an attorney’s - 
years of experience, as well as 
the length of time of litigation 
and the number of appeals of a 
specific case. 
Attorney Larry Menefee 

compiled a questionnaire ask- 
ing the customary hourly fee 
charged by an attorney handl- 
ing civil litigation in federal 

  
) 

court for a new client. The 
questionnaire was ‘distributed. 
at an educational seminar for 
lawyers, = ‘1 

vary widely with the number of 
years of experience. ® 
Menefee said he designed the 

questionnaire “‘as a teaching 
tool and maybe'somebody will 
find it useful in a court hearing. 
Courts are often asked to set - 
fees for attorneys in a number 
of different types of cases.” 

He said the typical rule in 
America is that each party 
pays his own, legal fees. 
However, he said, about '60 
statutes follow . the English 
rule, wherein the loser pays. 

In his survey, participants 
were asked to state a fee or 
range of fees for attorneys with 

  

Joanne’s Fashions Winter 

one year, five years, 10 years 
and 20 years of experince. The | 
fee would be ‘billed~antt paid 

; ~+. ‘quarterly.’ 
Menefee’, said that, ‘as, he. 

expected, the fees: tended to - 
The survey ‘showed: 

® For an attorney in his first 
year of practice, the response 
‘ranged from $40 an hour to $100 
an: hour, However, 90 percent 
said they would charge $40 to 
$70. an hour and 50 percent 
would charge $50 to $60 an 
hour. iy 

e Attorneys with five years of 
experience rated chargés from 

\ 

$40 to $120 an hour. Ninety 
‘percent of the responses were 
between $55 and $95 an hour, 
while 75 percent of “the at- 
forneys said $65 and ‘$85 an 
hour. i 

® For an attorney with 10 

Please see Page 6, Col. 1 
  

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Frosting $15.00. Charles 
Academy Of Beauty, 478- 

Clearance 30 to 50% off. 478- 
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(Continued From Page 1)   Lawyers 
years of experience, responses 
ranged from $55 to more than 
$135 an hour. Ninety percent of 
the responses were between 
$75 and $115 an hour, while 50 
percent of the responses were 

for $90 and $100 an hour. 
© For an attorney with 20 

years of practice, responses 
ranged from $85 to more than 
$135 an hour. Ninety percent 
responded with $90 to more 

  

  

than $135 an hour. 
Menefee said about 25 per- 

cent of the attorneys said a 
rate between $120 and $125 per 

i hour would be typical. Fifteen 
percent said $100 per hour 
would be typical, while another 
15 percent felt fees of $135 to 
$250 per hour would be typical. 

The survey also asked at- 
torneys to assume that the 
litigation would require 150 
hours each year and the fee 
would be paid only if and when 
the client finally won. 

More than 50 percent of the 
attorneys said an enhancement 
of 1% to 2 times the hourly rate 
would be appropriate if the 
case lasted two years and was 
not appealed. 

Ninety percent said enhan- 
cements ranging from 1% 
times the hourly rate to six 
times the rate if the case lasted 
four years and was appealed 
once. Seventy percent of the 
responses were between two 
and four times the rate, and 50 
percent were two to three 
times the rate. 

Ninety percent cited two 
times the hourly rate to more 
than eight times the hourly 
rate if the case lasted six years 
and was appealed twice. 
Seventy percent said rates 
between two and six times the 

rate, while 50 percent said 
rates between three and four 
times the hourly rate. 

Not all attorneys answered 
all three questions and there 
were 33 to 37 responses for 
each question.