SmartBrief
Confirm favorite deletion?
Legal Ethics Keyed to Rhode, 8th Ed.
In re Fordham
Citation:
423 Mass. 481, 668 N.E.2d 816 (1996)Facts
In March 1989, Timothy Clark was arrested and charged with OUI and related offenses. Timothy and his father consulted with three lawyers who offered to represent Timothy for fees between $3,000 and $10,000. Later, when Laurence Clark (Timothy’s father) was servicing an alarm at Fordham’s home, he discussed the case with Fordham. Despite Fordham’s admission that he had never represented a client in an OUI case or any criminal matter and had never tried a case in District Court, the Clarks hired him. Fordham explained he worked on a time-charge basis and would bill monthly.
Fordham filed four pretrial motions, including a novel motion to suppress breathalyzer results. The trial was held in October 1989, and Timothy was acquitted. Fordham billed a total of $50,022.25 for 227 hours of work (153 by Fordham, 74 by associates). Clark paid $10,000 but expressed concern about the amount. Expert witnesses testified that typical fees for OUI cases ranged from $1,000 to $7,500, with most experienced attorneys spending between 15-40 hours on similar cases.
Only StudyBuddy Pro offers the complete Case Brief Anatomy*
Access the most important case brief elements for optimal case understanding.
*Case Brief Anatomy includes: Brief Prologue, Complete Case Brief, Brief Epilogue
- The Brief Prologue provides necessary case brief introductory information and includes:
Topic:
Identifies the topic of law and where this case fits within your course outline.Parties:
Identifies the cast of characters involved in the case.Procedural Posture & History:
Shares the case history with how lower courts have ruled on the matter.Case Key Terms, Acts, Doctrines, etc.:
A case specific Legal Term Dictionary.Case Doctrines, Acts, Statutes, Amendments and Treatises:
Identifies and Defines Legal Authority used in this case.
- The Case Brief is the complete case summarized and authored in the traditional Law School I.R.A.C. format. The Pro case brief includes:
Brief Facts:
A Synopsis of the Facts of the case.Rule of Law:
Identifies the Legal Principle the Court used in deciding the case.Facts:
What are the factual circumstances that gave rise to the civil or criminal case? What is the relationship of the Parties that are involved in the case.Issue(s):
Lists the Questions of Law that are raised by the Facts of the case.Holding:
Shares the Court's answer to the legal questions raised in the issue.Concurring / Dissenting Opinions:
Includes valuable concurring or dissenting opinions and their key points.Reasoning and Analysis:
Identifies the chain of argument(s) which led the judges to rule as they did.
- The Brief Prologue closes the case brief with important forward-looking discussion and includes:
Policy:
Identifies the Policy if any that has been established by the case.Court Direction:
Shares where the Court went from here for this case.