Del Rosso v. Staten Island University Hospital

Summary

The Appellate Division, Second Department, affirmed an order allocating 25% of a net contingency fee to Krentsel Guzman Herbert, LLP and 75% to Harris, Keenan, & Goldfarb after the plaintiff changed counsel before settlement. The court held that the allocation was not an improvident exercise of the Supreme Court's discretion, considering the circumstances, equities, time and labor, difficulty, skill, and effectiveness of the attorneys' work.

Holdings

1. In a fee dispute between current and discharged counsel governed by a contingent-fee retainer, the discharged attorney may elect immediate compensation based on quantum meruit or a contingent percentage fee based on the attorney's proportionate share of the work performed on the whole case.
2. An award of a reasonable attorney's fee is within the sound discretion of the Supreme Court, and the 25% allocation to Krentsel was not an improvident exercise of that discretion.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Supreme Court properly allocated the net contingency fee by awarding Krentsel 25% and Harris 75% based on the firms' respective work and the circumstances of the case.
2. Whether the 25% award to Krentsel constituted an improvident exercise of the Supreme Court's discretion.

Disposition

affirmed