Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York; January 11, 1998; New York; State Appellate Court
In the case concerning damages for personal injuries, nonparty Frank Mitchell Corso, P.C. appeals a September 10, 1996 order from the Supreme Court, Suffolk County, which granted plaintiffs’ former law firm, McElligott, Kujawski, Dellicarpini, a charging lien and awarded them 15% of the attorneys' fee. The order is affirmed, with costs. The court determined that the nonparty respondents were discharged without cause, thus entitled to compensation based on the fair and reasonable value of their services, referencing established case law (Klein v Eubank, Matter of Cohen v Grainger, Lai Ling Cheng v Modansky Leasing Co., Matter of Weitling, Clifford v Pierce). The appellate court rejected the nonparty appellant's argument that the Supreme Court improperly exercised discretion in apportioning the attorneys' fee, citing relevant precedents (Matter of Freeman, Lefkowitz v Van Ess, Shrauger v Shrauger). The decision was agreed upon by Justices O’Brien, Joy, Friedmann, and Goldstein.
