In Re Attorney Fees of Ujlaky

869 N.W.2d 624, 498 Mich. 890

• Court: Michigan Supreme Court
• Decided: September 30, 2015
• Docket: 150887; Court of Appeals 316494
• Status: Published

Opinion

Pursuant to MCR 7.305(H)(1), in lieu of granting leave to appeal, we reverse the judgment of the Court of Appeals as to Docket No. 316494, and we remand this case to the Kent Circuit Court for a determination of the reasonableness of the attorney fees requested. The trial court applied the county’s fee schedule, which capped compensation for plea cases at $660, but did not address at all the reasonableness of the fee in relation to the actual services rendered, as itemized by the appellant. See In re Recorder’s Court Bar Ass’n, 443 Mich 110, 131 (1993). Although the expenditure of any amount of time beyond that contemplated by the schedule for the typical case does not, ipso facto, warrant extra fees, spending a significant but reasonable number of hours beyond the norm may. On remand, the trial court shall either award the requested fees, or articulate on the record its basis for concluding that such fees are not reasonable. See, e.g., In re Attorney Fees of Mullkoff, 176 Mich App 82, 85-88 (1989), and In re Attorney Fees of Jamnik, 176 Mich App 827, 831 (1989). We do not retain jurisdiction.