ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Legal Newsline) - A Virginia law firm has gone to court to enforce an arbitration award in a dispute worth at least $7 million dollars from a former client.
Clare Locke LLP on April 4 in Virginia federal court filed a petition to confirm an arbitration award against its former client, now-defunct Kytch Inc.
The law firm is claiming millions of dollars in attorneys' fees and costs owed by Kytch for services rendered over three years. Clare Locke alleges that Kytch discharged the firm in October 2023 without settling its dues.
When Kytch failed to respond to Clare Locke's invoices, the law firm filed attorneys' liens on Kytch's pending claims and initiated an arbitration before the American Arbitration Association (AAA).
Clare Locke says the company began telling courts overseeing its lawsuits that it had reached a tentative settlement with defendants. Clare Locke says it was not told about the settlement.
It accuses Kytch of refusing to put an enforceable agreement protecting the firms fees into writing. An arbitrator directed Kytch to provide Clare Locke with settlement documents.
Clare Locke is represented by Bryan Wilson and others at Williams & Connolly.