$4M Attorney Fee Award Cut in Half by Ohio High Court

A nearly $4 million payday for a prevailing group of attorneys was lopped in half by the Ohio Supreme Court, which ruled an “enhancement” that doubled the winning lawyers’ fees went too far.

Ohio’s lodestar calculation, the method for determining a reasonable attorneys fee, already factors in the complexity and time of litigation, and the expertise of the attorneys involved, the court said in its opinion issued Wednesday.

A state trial and appellate court were wrong to look to these factors and double the more than $1.99 million in attorneys fees awarded to Phoenix Lighting Group LLC’s lawyers, the high ...