An Florida law firm is suing an Illinois law firm for failing to pay it a fee for joining in as counsel on a class action lawsuit in Florida.
Cohen, Milstein, Sellers & Toll, PLLC filed the lawsuit in Florida Circuit Court on May 26 against Anderson + Wanca, and Bock & Hatch LLC claiming it is owed about $280,000 in fees for joining in on the class action lawsuit.
The suit claims Cohen agreed in March 2012 to to serve as the local counsel for a class action suit that Anderson was involved in in Florida. The two firms came to terms on a fee agreement, and also agreed that Cohen would receive 20 percent of the attorneys' fees awarded in the class action suit.
In October 2014 the court awarded about $1.4 million in attorneys' fees. Cohen claims Anderson has not paid the 20 percent contingency fee made in the fee agreement. In March, Anderson acknowledged the fee agreement, but “demanded” Cohen reduce the fee, the lawsuit said.
In addition to the $280,000, the plaintiff is also seeking lost profit damages, plus court costs for filing the suit.
The law firm is represented by Alan B. Rose of Mrachek, Fitzgerald, Rose, Konopka, Thomas & Weiss, P.A. in West Palm Beach, Fla.
Circuit Court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit in and for Palm Beach County, Florida case number 9:15-cv-80662.