Graubard Miller’s $44 million contingency fee arrangement with the late Alice Lawrence that was validated by the Court of Appeals (NYLJ, Oct. 29, 2014) could nearly double now that Manhattan Surrogate Nora Anderson has ruled that pre-verdict annual interest of 9 percent applies.
Considering the issue of the interest on remand from the Court of Appeals, Anderson ruled in Matter of Lawrence, Deceased, 1982-175, that 9 percent interest between July 25, 2005, when the contingency agreement was signed and Oct. 28, 2014, when the Court of Appeals settled the long-standing fee dispute, applies.
