LOS ANGELES ―
John W. Sheller, a partner in the
Los Angeles office of Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, has recovered a defense award in a legal malpractice arbitration. Mr. Sheller represented a law firm on a $215,000 fee claim arising out of a construction defect case. The former clients counterclaimed for malpractice, seeking $750,000, plus attorneys’ fees and costs.
The main issue in the legal malpractice case was how the law firm had handled the recovery of expert fees of approximately $180,000 in the underlying matter. The former clients had recovered a verdict in their favor in the underlying matter, but no expert fees were awarded. The arbitrator found in favor of the law firm on both the complaint and cross-complaint; issued an award in the firm’s favor; and required the former clients to pay the law firm the full amount of its claim and all of the firm’s approximately $150,000 in attorneys’ fees and costs incurred in the legal malpractice case.
Founded in 1934, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP is a national law firm with approximately 500 lawyers in 24 offices spanning 12 states, including
Arizona,
California,
Florida,
Illinois,
Indiana,
Massachusetts,
Minnesota,
Missouri,
New York,
Oregon,
Rhode Island and
Wisconsin.
Hinshaw offers a full-service practice, with an emphasis in litigation, business law and corporate transactions, environmental, intellectual property, labor and employment law, professional liability defense, estate planning and taxation matters. The firm represents a range of for-profit and not-for-profit clients in industries that include alarm and security services, construction, financial services, health care, hospitality, insurance, legal, manufacturing, real estate, retail and transportation. Hinshaw clients also include government agencies, municipalities and schools