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Pr - JAN 5 1988 BOOK 70 F'GF.517 PROPOSED SETTLEMENT ON ATTORNEY'S FEES FOR SANCTUARY PARK (INDIAN RIVER BOULEVARD NORTH) The Board reviewed the following memo dated 12130187: TO: THROUGH: FROM: u/6i DATE: SUBJECT: The Board of County Commissioners Charles P. Vitunac County Attorney William G. Collins II Assistant County Attorney December 30, 1987 Proposed Settlement on Attorney's Fees for Sanctuary Park (Indian River Boulevard North) Mr. O'Haire is entitled to attorney's fees from the County for his efforts in handling this inverse condemnation taking case. He has petitioned the court for an attorney's fee award of $30,000. His experts testified that Mr. O'Haire's services were worth between $20,000 and $28,000. Based on the time sheets submitted, a $30,000 award would work out to around $300 per hour. Though this seems excessive, a review of the cases for this judicial district shows that fees of $300 per hour, $400 per hour and even $500 per hour have frequently been granted and upheld on appeal in such cases. The Florida Supreme Court has upheld multiplying normal hourly fees when good results were unlikely at the outset. Mr. O'Haire has testified to the court (accurately) that at the time he filed suit money damages were not an available remedy, hence good results were unlikely and he would be entitled to a multiple of his normal hourly fee. In the past year the U.S. Supreme Court adopted the position Mr. O'Haire espoused in his suit, allowing money damages for a taking. Mr. O'Haire has testified that this novel, complex issue also merited a higher than normal fee. Based on the above considerations and review of his time sheets, I inquired if a $20,000 settlement would be accepted by Mr. O'Haire. He countered that he would need at least $23,000 to settle. For that, I thought we might as well try to do better in court. Mr. O'Haire reduced his settlement figure to $22,000. That figure is close enough to what I would consider a good settlement to make going to court where we face a possible $30,000 assessment unwise. Mr. O'Haire's proposed settlement equals about 8.8% of the benefit he obtained for his client. This compares favorably with the typical attorney fee award in real property litigation of 10% of the value of the property/benefit obtained for the client. I would recommend settling with Mr. O'Haire for an attorney's fee of $22,000. If not settled, the hearing on Mr. O'Haire's fee entitlement wi l l take place at noon on January 12, 1988 in Fort Pierce before Judge Vocelle. 48