In re Moran

231 B.R. 290, 1998 Bankr. LEXIS 1823, 1998 WL 1017641
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, N.D. Illinois
DecidedDecember 1, 1998
DocketBankruptcy No. 96 B 06133
StatusPublished

This text of 231 B.R. 290 (In re Moran) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, N.D. Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Moran, 231 B.R. 290, 1998 Bankr. LEXIS 1823, 1998 WL 1017641 (Ill. 1998).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

SUSAN PIERSON SONDERBY, Chief Judge.

This matter came before the Court on the Trustee’s Application to Approve Compromise of Lawsuit, for Authorization for Pay Special Counsel, for Authorization to Make Interim Distribution to Debtor and for Other Relief. A hearing was held on September 8, 1998 and an order was entered by this Court approving the subject settlement. Left for resolution was the issue of whether the costs expended in the debtors’ personal injury lawsuit are to be paid out of the attorneys’ share of the settlement proceeds, out of the gross settlement prior to paying the attorneys’ contingency fee or are to be paid directly out of the debtors’ share of the settlement.1

Background

This case was commenced by Todd B. Moran and Mary Moran voluntarily filing a petition for relief under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code on or about March 11, 1996. A trustee (“Trustee”) was appointed and qualified. The first meeting of creditors was held.

[292]*292The Trustee identified as an asset of the estate the debtors’ interest in a lawsuit pending in the Circuit Court of Cook County for damages arising from personal injuries en-captioned Todd B. Moran and Mary Moran v. Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, Near North Insurance Agency, Inc., an Illinois Corporation, Chicago White Sox Limited, an Illinois Limited Partnership (the “Lawsuit”).2

The Lawsuit arose from an accident in which Mr. Moran suffered a serious injury on or about October 16, 1991. In or about August of 1992, Mr. Moran hired James A. Coghlan Ltd. (“Coghlan Firm”) to represent him in the Lawsuit. The Trustee applied to this Court in or about August of 1996 to employ the Coghlan Firm as special counsel to liquidate the Morans’ rights in the Lawsuit.

The order authorizing the Coghlan Firm’s retention states in pertinent part as follows:

Compensation for Trustee’s special counsel is approved pursuant to the terms set forth in the contingent fee agreement made between Debtor and proposed special counsel, a copy of which is attached to and made a part of the Unsworn Declaration attached to the Application. In addition to fees for legal services, Trustee’s special counsel shall be entitled to reimbursement for costs expended, but only if and to the extent there is a recovery from the lawsuit. Payment of any and all compensation and reimbursement of expenses to Trustee’s special counsel shall be subject to further application and approval of this Court.

The contingent fee agreement to which the order refers makes no mention of the payment of expenses. Neither Mr. Coghlan’s declaration submitted with the Trustee’s application nor the application itself mentions expenses. Both documents refer solely to the fee agreement. Mr. Moran testified at the hearing that the issue of expenses did not come up at the time of the signing of the fee agreement. Mrs. Moran testified that the issue of expenses was not mentioned by anyone from the Coghlan Firm until the first settlement offer was made in June of 1998.

On or about August 6, 1998 the Lawsuit was settled before the Honorable Richard Elrod in the Circuit Court of Cook County subject to this Court’s approval. The Trustee is to receive $540,000 in settlement proceeds. Out of that money, the Trustee requested permission to pay $150,000 to Liberty Mutual Insurance Company in satisfaction of its worker’s compensation lien, $179,982 to the Coghlan Firm in satisfaction of attorneys’ fees figured at 33% of the gross settlement and $11,969.31 to the Coghlan Firm in satisfaction of costs it expended. The balance would be used to pay claims scheduled in the bankruptcy case and the surplus would go to the debtors.

A hearing was held on September 8, 1998. The Trustee put on his case for the settlement, which included witnesses and documents. The Morans, who were not represented at the hearing, had the opportunity to question the witnesses and to make sworn statements. The Morans expressed their deep disappointment with the settlement based on representations that had been made to them by Mr. Coghlan and his associates about the value of the lawsuit. They explained that the attorneys told them that the case was worth $3.2 million dollars. The Morans’ testimony regarding what they were told about the reimbursement of expenses was unclear. The Court surmises that expenses were not a significant issue at the time that the Morans and their counsel believed that they were anticipating a multimillion dollar recovery.

An associate of the Coghlan Firm testified about the problems that developed with the case as it progressed, including changes in Illinois law that worked to the Morans’ detriment. He testified that the Circuit Court’s release of certain defendants seriously and adversely affected the Morans’ case and that his firm vigorously but unsuccessfully prosecuted an appeal. The Morans reluctantly agreed to the settlement. However, they argued that the expenses of the litigation [293]*293should not be borne by them and the Court took the issue under advisement.

Discussion

The Coghlan Firm argues that Illinois law prevents an attorney from assuming ultimate responsibility for the costs and expenses of a litigation. It cites Partee v. Compton, 273 Ill.App.3d 721, 210 Ill.Dec. 549, 653 N.E.2d 454 (5th Dist.1995) and Schlosser v. Jursich, 87 Ill.App.3d 824, 43 Ill.Dec. 257, 410 N.E.2d 257 (2nd Dist.1980). In Schlosser, 87 Ill.App.3d 824, 43 Ill.Dec. 257, 410 N.E.2d 257, the Court considered the issue of whether an attorney can be ordered to pay costs in a personal injury suit when the contingency fee contract made no provision for the payment of expenses. The Court opined that “[i]t has long been the rule in Illinois that a contingency fee contract requiring the attorney to assume ultimate responsibility for costs and expenses of litigation is champertous and void as against public policy [citations omitted]. This view has been reiterated in the [then] newly adopted Code of Professional Responsibility (Supreme Court Rule 5— 103(b)) ...” Id. at 825-826, 43 Ill.Dec. 257, 410 N.E.2d at 258.

The Rule on which the Schlosser Court relied provided as follows:

(b) While representing a client in connection with contemplated or pending litigation, a lawyer shall not advance or guarantee financial assistance to his client, except that a lawyer may advance or guarantee the expenses of litigation, including court costs, expenses of investigation, expenses of medical examination, and costs of obtaining and presenting evidence, provided the client remains ultimately liable for such expenses.

Code of Professional Responsibility, Canon 5, Rule 5-103(b)(West 1989)(effeetive July 1, 1980).

Partee v. Compton, 273 Ill.App.3d 721, 210 Ill.Dec. 549, 653 N.E.2d 454 (5th Dist.1995), also cited by the Coghlan Firm, is inapposite to this case. The fee agreement at issue in that case like the one in this case contained no language regarding expenses.

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Related

Schlosser v. Jursich
410 N.E.2d 257 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1980)
Partee v. Compton
653 N.E.2d 454 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1995)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
231 B.R. 290, 1998 Bankr. LEXIS 1823, 1998 WL 1017641, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-moran-ilnb-1998.