LEGAL FEE AUDITS – Aug 1985 – (INC. Magazine)
Reprinted from INC. Magazine, August 1985, by Patricia Amend
Dr. Harry J. Maue, President of Stuart, Maue, Mitchell & James, Ltd. of St. Louis, reviews legal bills, including depositions, interrogatories, and travel expenses. Dr. Maue determines whether each charge is fully documented, necessary, and in accordance with the American Bar Association’s billing guidelines. For example, an automobile dealership had a liability case that went to court. The company won the case, but it was also saddled with a legal fee of about $62,750. An audit by Dr. Maue determined that the services performed were worth only $44,000. The law firm knocked $10,000 off the dealership’s legal bill.
