A lawyer is asking the New Jersey Supreme Court to grant certification in a fee-shifting case where his retainer agreement with an hourly billing component was declared null and void.

Somerville attorney Brian Cige was hit with a lawsuit seeking to void his retainer after he sent a bill for $286,746 to client Lisa Balducci in a fee-shifting case under the state Law Against Discrimination. A trial judge declared the fee agreement unenforceable and the Appellate Division affirmed, finding that Cige failed to sufficiently explain the agreement to his client.