A dispute over attorney fees is headed back to trial court after the Pennsylvania Superior Court determined a $1.37 million fee award added to a $34,000 trial judgment was void outright.

The court struck down the fee award because, unlike the $34,000 judgment, attorney fees were granted by a clerk outside the approval of the trial judge. The judgment was based solely on the affidavit of the winning party, according to the Nov. 12 opinion, and the clerk did not have the authority to award it.