FedSoc Blog

In The AmLaw Daily on Friday, Steven Harper, former partner at Kirkland & Ellis and adjunct professor at Northwestern University, argues that, despite the unpopularity of the billable hour model among clients, associates, and partners in the legal community, it will persist in part due to the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in Perdue v. Kenny A. In that case, the Court upheld determining the legal fees awarded to winning plaintiffs under a certain federal statute on the basis of hourly billing. The Court decided that the billable hour had not yet become out of the ordinary, but Harper argues that the Supreme Court's decision in the case helps ensure that practitioners, in order to avoid the risk of not being paid, will continue to adhere to this method of determining pay.

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