Attorney Fee Shifting – A Comprehensive Guide
Date: Sep 30, 2024 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Location: Online
Member Price: $159.00
Non-Member Price: $199.00
Section Price: $0.00
Areas of Law: For All Attorneys
Earn up to 3.3 credits! (More Information)
Keynote
Moderator
- Yongmoon Kim, Esq.
- Kim Law Firm LLC, Hackensackis a consumer advocate and attorney with the Kim Law Firm LLC in Hackensack, New Jersey, where he concentrates his practice in consumer protection, class actions and occasionally personal injury cases.
Mr. Kim has been a pro bono attorney with Northeast New Jersey Legal Services, Chair of the Bergen County Bar Association Consumer Law Committee and a member of the New Jersey State Bar Association Consumer Protection Law and Class Actions Committees. He has also been a member of the Board of Directors of the Consumers League of New Jersey (CLNJ), a nonprofit organization which advocates on behalf of consumers, and also represents the CLNJ on the New Jersey Supreme Court Special Civil Part Committee.
Mr. Kim has been recognized for his pro bono contributions and is the recipient of Equal Justice Medals bestowed by Legal Services of New Jersey and the Champions of Justice Award from Northeast New Jersey Legal Services. He has lectured for ICLE and the New Jersey Association for Justice.
Mr. Kim received his B.A. from the State University of New York at Binghamton and his J.D. from Florida Coastal School of Law.
(9/23)
Presenters
- Tracey C. Hinson, Esq.
- Hinson Snipes, LLP, Princeton
- Flavio L. Komuves, Esq.
- Weissman & Mintz LLC, Somerset
- Angelica M. Mercado, Esq.
- Einhorn Barbarito Frost & Botwinick, Denville
- David C. Ricci, Esq.
- Law Office of David C. Ricci LLC, Short Hills
- Nancy Erika Smith, Esq.
- Smith Mullin PC, Montclair
Obtaining an order or agreement for an opposing party to pay your attorney fees is harder than many clients think. Establishing the fault or contractual obligation to reimburse an opposing party for their litigation expense often requires something extraordinary.
Our panel of experts will provide attendees with the statutory citations, experiences, drafting tips and appropriate language to include in fee petitions before New Jersey courts. Join us for a comprehensive guide on how to truly make your client whole.
Program Agenda:
- 9:00 | Welcome and Overview – Yongmoon Kim, Esq.
- 9:10 | How to Make a Fee Application – David C. Ricci, Esq. and Nancy Erika Smith, Esq.
- The Mechanics – What needs to be submitted; Important recitations in the supporting affidavit; billing practices that will help support the application; how to delineate between fees connected to a successful cause of action and ones that weren’t; how to challenge the defense objections; fee enhancements set forth by Rendine vs. Pantzer as modified by Purdue vs. Kenny.
- Specific Issues related to Fee Applications Under the LAD and CEPA
under which the losing party is obligated to pay attorneys’ fees; establishing the hourly rate under Rendine; showing time expended; the multiplier; the appeal; and the contingent fee rule.
- 10:10 | Fee Shifting in Family Law – Angelica M. Mercado, Esq.
- N.J.S.A. 2A:34-23; Rule 5:3-5(c); Rule 1:10-3; and Rule 4:42-9(b), (c) and (d)
- “Bad Faith” in Counsel Fee Award Determinations
- Bankruptcy, Dischargeability, and Fees in the “nature of support”
- Fees for Court-appointed Guardians, Parenting Coordinators and Mediators
- Attorney’s Fees in Domestic Violence Matters; N.J.S.A. 2C:25-29(b)(4)
- Litigation funds and the distribution of assets from which to pay attorney’s fees
- 10:40 | Break
- 10:50 | Fee Shifting in Civil Rights Cases -Tracey C. Hinson, Esq.
Topics include: legal principles and statutory provisions, who is a “prevailing party” when it comes to fee shifting and what is the significance of being a partially successful litigant in the context of an attorney fee application, does a settlement trigger attorney fee shifting, and should there be separate negotiation for attorney fees, does a nominal award trigger attorney fee shifting, what happens when the defendant halts their unlawful behavior in response to being sued.
- 11:20 | Fee Shifting in OPRA Cases - Flavio L. Komuves, Esq.
Topics include: requirements under the revised OPRA statute, ways of establishing a fee when you don’t get a certification from another lawyer, mechanics of settlement in attorney fee cases, defenses including pattern billing or block billing, extra staffing, partial success in the case, South Jersey vs. Central/North Jersey computations
- 11:50 | Q&A and Wrap Up
- 12:00 | Adjourn
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