Bell v. State
Bell v. State
Opinion of the Court
OPINION
For the reasons stated in Bailey v. Litwin Corp., 780 P.2d 1007, 1011-12 (Alaska 1989), the superior court’s decision is AFFIRMED.
RABINOWITZ, J., with whom COMPTON, J., joins, dissenting.
Dissenting Opinion
with whom COMPTON, Justice, joins, dissenting.
In Wise Mechanical Contractors v. Bignell, 718 P.2d 971 (Alaska 1986) we noted:
[T]he objective of awarding attorney’s fees in compensation cases is to ensure that competent counsel are available to represent injured workers. This objective would not be furthered by a system in which claimants’ counsel could receive*1335 nothing more than an hourly fee when they win while receiving nothing at all when they lose.
Id. at 975 (citation omitted).
In the instant case the Board noted appellant’s counsel’s request for an award of enhanced attorney’s fees “based on the alleged contingent nature of this case” (emphasis supplied) but then failed to explain why it denied the request.
. In Wise Mechanical Contractors v. Bignell, 718 P.2d at 975, we recognized that payment of attorney’s fees is contingent upon a claimant’s success since "[a] contingency arrangement is ordinarily necessary because most injured claimants lack the financial resources to pay an attorney an hourly fee.”
Reference
- Full Case Name
- David L. BELL v. STATE of Alaska and Harbor Adjustment Service
- Status
- Published