Mink v. Maccabee
Both Mink and Maccabee are lawyers. In October 1999, Maccabee referred an insurance bad faith case to Mink. The client's name was Scott Aden and the case arose out of the Northridge earthquake. The case settled in September 2000. On February 19, 2002, Maccabee sued Mink, seeking a referral fee. Maccabee alleged that in 1999, Mink promised him a reasonable referral fee, that in October or November of 2001, Mink received $400,000 in compensation for the bad faith case, and that Aden signed an acknowledgment and consent to the division of fees on or about February 15, 2002.
Court turn to Mink's contention that the award was not supported by the evidence. He cites Epstein's testimony that 20 to 25 percent would have been a reasonable referral fee in this case, and argues that Epstein, who was not familiar with some aspects of the underlying case, did not have enough information to competently offer that opinion. The argument ignores the fact that Epstein testified that referral fees are in general, in the Los Angeles legal community, 20 to 25 percent, and that other lawyers testified to similar ranges. Even if Epstein should not have testified about a reasonable fee in this case, the jury's verdict was supported by the evidence concerning the underlying case (including the evidence that Maccabee worked on the underlying case) and referral fees in the local legal community.
The judgment is affirmed.
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