SAN FRANCISCO — Three plaintiffs attorneys who negotiated a creative fee agreement in a consumer class action are lucky they didn’t use more specific language.
The First District Court of Appeal ruled Friday afternoon that a “clear sailing” provision in which the parties agreed to be bound by Superior Court Judge Richard Kramer’s attorney fee award did not preclude an appeal. That’s a good thing for George Donaldson, Daniel Harris and Guy Calladine, who saw Kramer slash their $2.2 million fee request to $350,000. The appellate court sent the case back to Kramer and directed that he loosen up his standard for awarding fees in the case.
