Opinion ID: 835208
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Facts in the Burch Matter

Text: The accused represented Burch in 10 or more matters over a number of years and billed Burch for those services. On the lower margin of many of the bills that were received in evidence, the accused included the following statement: Statements not paid within 30 days of billing will be charged a late fee of 1 1/2% per month of the unpaid balance on the statement. The late fees exceeded the legal rate of interest, and the fee agreements that were received in evidence and signed by Burch did not include a provision requiring that Burch pay those fees. See ORS 82.010(1) (2003) (legal rate of interest for certain transactions, unless parties otherwise agreed, was nine percent per year). On October 18, 2000, the accused and Burch entered into a contingent-fee agreement providing that the accused would represent Burch in a case that involved assault, battery, and trespass claims against one Thompson. On February 27, 2001, the accused wrote a letter to Burch advising him to file two separate actions in the Thompson caseone for the assault and battery claims, and one for trespass. In the accused's view, the potential award on the assault and battery claims, which had resulted in personal injuries, was sufficient to justify a contingent fee. By contrast, the potential award on the trespass claim likely would not be sufficiently sizeable to justify the accused handling the case on a contingent-fee basis. However, the accused reasoned, the trespass claim would entitle Burch to seek an award of attorney fees reasonably incurred, should he prevail. See ORS 20.080 (providing for attorney fees in certain tort actions pleading minimal damages). That suggested to the accused that it would be better to bill the trespass claim on an hourly fee basis. During several telephone conversations and one in-person meeting, the accused and Burch discussed the fee arrangement. The accused testified that Burch had agreed to the change that the accused had proposed and that, thereafter, the accused had billed Burch on an hourly fee basis for the work that he performed on the trespass matter in accordance with their modified oral agreement. Burch testified that he did not remember agreeing to the change in billing. However, the accused established that he had billed Burch on an hourly fee basis for his work on the trespass claim and that Burch had paid most, but not all, of those bills. Burch did not prevail in the trespass case against Thompson and was therefore not entitled to seek recovery in that action. The accused notified Burch that he owed fees for the Thompson trespass case and other unrelated matters and billed Burch a total of more than $15,000. That total included approximately $300 in late fees and slightly more than $1,000 for the Thompson trespass matter. When Burch refused to pay any portion of that bill, the accused transferred the debt to a collection agency. At the arbitration that followed, Burch was required to pay approximately half of the amount that the accused had billed him. It is unclear whether the arbitration award included the late fees or any sum for the trespass matter.