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ACC Litigation Committee Presentation: Structuring Alternative Fee Arrangements in High-Stakes, Complex Litigation
Mickey Mixson and Ronan Doherty participated in an Association of Corporate Counsel Litigation Committee webcast presentation on "Structuring Alternative Fee Arrangements in High-Stakes, Complex Litigation" on Thursday, May 15, 2014 at noon EST.
Structuring Alternative Fee Arrangements in High-Stakes, Complex Litigation
Developing an alternative fee arrangement (AFA), such as a fixed fee, for high-volume predictable work is becoming more common. Less common, is the use of an AFA in a rare, unexpected high-stakes business dispute. In these cases, the complex facts, legal theories, subject matter, and amount of potential exposure often leads to a “win at all cost” mentality in which firms billing by the hour feast. This presentation will outline the importance of having these sensitive matters handled on fee arrangements that reward the firm for efficiently achieving favorable outcomes and punish them for overstaffing, overworking, duplicating efforts, attorney turnover, etc. It will also discuss case evaluation and management techniques employed by firms handling high-stakes cases on pure contingency fee arrangements – the ultimate AFA. Attendees will receive a document with examples of engagement letters used in high-stakes litigation cases using risk-sharing AFAs.