Getting Paid

An attorney may be compensated for legal work done to secure fees in a guardianship matter, according to a decision issued today by the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

Appellant, Bruce E. Gardner, Esq., asserts in this appeal that he is “entitled to compensation from the Guardianship Fund for the time he spent protecting his rights to compensation in appeals to this Court that are related to his appointment as guardian and the guardianship duties he performed.” He seeks a remand to the Superior Court for that court to reconsider his fee petition and “to determine the reasonableness of the compensation” he requested for his appellate work. For the reasons discussed below, we agree that the Superior Court is authorized to approve compensation to Mr. Gardner for his fee-related appellate litigation work relating to his service as guardian — and, if the ward‟s assets are depleted, to approve payment to Mr. Gardner from the Guardianship Fund — even if (as appellee District of Columbia contends) “the fee-related litigation was of no benefit to the [particular] ward.” We remand to the Superior Court the issue of Mr. Gardner‟s entitlement to compensation for his appellate work.

Associate Judge Thompson authored the unanimous opinion. (Mike Frisch)