Opinion ID: 6492886
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: requests for attorney’s fees

Text: Court-appointed counsel are entitled to reasonable compensation for necessary fees [HRS § 802-5]. The Court determines the amount of reasonable compensation based upon statutory limits. If a request appears unreasonable, the court may summarily reduce or deny it. Reasonable compensation for fees is based upon the following: A. Fee Schedule 1. Maximum Fees [HRS § 802-5(b) ] a. Felony case $6,000 [[Image here]] 2. Compensation Rate [HRS § 802-5(b)] $90 per hour [[Image here]] 4. Payment Exceeding Maximum Fees [HRS § 802-5(b) ] Payment in excess of the statutory maximum is within the discretion of the Court. Such payment may be made if 1) the presiding trial judge certifies that the excess payment is necessary for fair compensation and 2) the Administrative Judge approves. Where the presiding judge or Administrative Judge determines that the excess payment is not necessary to provide fair compensation, the amount may be summarily reduced. (emphasis in original, footnote omitted). Coincidentally, on the same day that the administrative judge reduced Bettencourt’s court-appointed attorney’s fees, Chief Justice Ronald T.Y. Moon issued a June 9, 2010 Order Rescinding Statewide Court Administrative Orders and Memoranda. The Order stated: It appears that previously approved statewide court administrative orders or memoranda include requirements that are more appropriate for court rules than for administrative orders and memoranda and that revised administrative orders and memoranda have not been submitted for my review, as instructed by my May 24, 2007 memorandum to the Chief Judges. Therefore, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, pursuant to Article VI, § 6 of the Hawai'i Constitution and effective immediately upon filing of this order, that all previously approved statewide circuit, family, and district court administrative orders or memoranda are hereby rescinded. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Administrative Director shall cause any such administrative orders or memoranda published on the Judiciary’s web page(s) to be removed therefrom and shall not permit posting of any administrative order or memorandum unless approved by the Chief Justice. (emphasis added). The order was timestamped filed at 9:57 a.m. on June 9, 2010. There is no time stamp accompanying the administrative judge’s approval of $26,640 in fees on June 9, 2010. C. The Instant Appeal Bettencourt timely appealed to the ICA, and his timely application for transfer to this court was accepted. An order granting or denying attorney’s fees under HRS § 802-5 is an appealable final order. See State v. Przeradzki, 6 Haw.App. 20, 21, 709 P.2d 105, 107 (1985). Bettencourt argues that the administrative judge, in reducing his fees, engaged in a standardless independent review of the trial judge’s certification of his attorney’s fees, abused his discretion by leaving no reasons on the record for the fee reduction, did not afford Bettencourt notice and an opportunity to be heard before reducing his fees, erroneously relied on C.A.0.1.1, and was most likely driven by impermissible financial and budgetary motives. Betten-court argues that the administrative judge’s review of the trial court’s certification of “fair compensation” should be deferential. He argues further that arbitrary excess fee reduc-. tions pose a constitutional threat to the indigent defendant’s right to competent legal representation and the court-appointed attorney’s right to due process and interest in fair compensation. The State of Hawai'i (“State”), through the Attorney General, argues that HRS § 802-5 was not intended to fully compensate court-appointed attorneys, that HRS § 802-5(b) sets forth a standard of “fair compensation” that applies to the trial judge but not the administrative judge, that the administrative judge has unfettered discretion to grant or deny excess attorney’s fees, and that the administrative judge was not required to set forth reasons for reducing Bettencourt’s fees. As a threshold matter, both parties dispute whether C.A.O. 1.1 was in effect at the time of the administrative judge’s order reducing fees and whether C.A.O. 1.1 authorized the reduction in fees. We need not decide this issue. To the extent that C.A.O. 1.1 permitted a summary reduction of excess attorney’s fees, it conflicts with this court’s case law, namely In re Attorney’s Fees of Reinhard Mohr, 97 Hawai'i 1, 32 P.3d 647 (2001), which held that an order awarding attorney’s fees under HRS § 802-5 is a judicial act subject to review under the abuse of discretion standard. Were summary reduction permissible, potentially arbitrary and capricious reductions to excess fee awards would be shielded from appellate review. The summary reduction of attorney’s fees is not authorized under HRS § 802-5(b) and Mohr.