Wallenstein v. Cohen, 45 A.D.3d 674, 845 N.Y.S.2d 428 (App. Div. 2007)
NY Underlying Fee Arbitration
Student Contributor: Maninder (Meena) Saini
Facts: Defendant-attorneys represented the plaintiff-client in a matrimonial action that resulted in a judgement for divorce pursuant to a stipulation of settlement. The plaintiff then complained to the grievance committee that the defendants over-charged her for their services and did not protect her interests. The case was transferred to Fee Arbitration. During the arbitration, it was found that defendants were entitled to the fees, which they sought. Two years later, the plaintiff commenced an action, alleging that defendants charged excessive fees and committed legal malpractice in representing plaintiff.
Issue: Can plaintiff re-litigate the issue of excessive attorney’s fees that was formerly resolved in arbitration?
Ruling: The Appellate Division held in this case that the action was barred by fee arbitration award and by collateral estoppel because all of the allegations in the complaint were “reasonably and plainly comprehended to be within the scope of the dispute submitted to arbitration.”
[T]he determination fixing the value of the defendants’ services necessarily determined that there was no malpractice.
Lesson: If the excessive fee allegation in the complaint was resolved by previous arbitration, the fee awarded to the attorney during arbitration may ultimately conclude that there is no malpractice. This is a fact sensitive ruling. The jurisdiction of the Fee Arbitration Committees in New Jersey, however, does not extend to deciding issues of legal malpractice, even if they are raised in the fee arbitration proceeding.
Tagged with: Alternate Dispute Resolution, attorney's fees, Family Law, New York
Posted in: Alternate Dispute Resolution, Attorneys Fees, Family Law, New York