Case Brief
Background, issue and holding.
Background
Chodos v. Borman arose from a dispute over attorney compensation following dissolution and related Marvin litigation. Attorney Hillel Chodos sought the reasonable value of his legal services after the underlying matters ended and a jury ultimately applied a five-times multiplier to the claimed hourly rate, producing a $7.8 million fee award.
The fee issue
The appeal focused on whether the multiplier was permissible in a quantum meruit recovery. The client-supplied case summary explains that Chodos had not undertaken the representation under a valid contingency agreement that shifted the risk of nonpayment to counsel, a circumstance commonly associated with enhanced fee awards.
The court’s holding
The Court of Appeal reversed and remanded for recalculation of the reasonable fee. It concluded that the multiplier was not justified under the governing lodestar principles and that the resulting award was excessive and inequitable on the record presented.
Philip Kaufler’s role
Philip Kaufler represented Chodos in the fee dispute. The site includes both the appellate case summary and the client-supplied Daily Journal coverage discussing the underlying fee controversy.
This case brief is provided for readability and general information. Follow the public opinion and related source links for the complete judicial record.