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LITIGATION MANAGEMENT – Effective Cost Containment

LITIGATION MANAGEMENT – Effective Cost Containment. 2002 Conference Branson, Missouri. Litigation Management. A Rand Institute for Civil Justice study of litigation costs shows $.43 on the dollar is paid to plaintiffs; $.57 is for cost of litigation. State of Mississippi.

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LITIGATION MANAGEMENT – Effective Cost Containment

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  1. LITIGATION MANAGEMENT – Effective Cost Containment 2002 Conference Branson, Missouri

  2. Litigation Management A Rand Institute for Civil Justice study of litigation costs shows $.43 on the dollar is paid to plaintiffs; $.57 is for cost of litigation.

  3. State of Mississippi

  4. State of Mississippi • Attorney selected from the Approved Attorney Register • Individual attorney hired, not firm • Payment for services limited to attorney on roster – any other charges are removed prior to payment

  5. State of Mississippi • Billing Guidelines: • Current rate for legal services - $110/hour. • Rate for defense of medical malpractice claims - $125/hour. • Paralegal rate not to exceed $60/hour.

  6. State of Mississippi • Billing Guidelines: • One approved attorney may charge for a maximum of two hours for reviewing the original file. • Mississippi Tort Claims Board Claim Number is to be referenced on all correspondence and bills.

  7. State of Mississippi • Billing Guidelines: • Description of work detailed separately on the bill showing time for each task. • Two approved attorneys may not render separate bills for one action or item. • Receipts required for extraordinary expenses that are more than $100.

  8. State of Mississippi • Billing Guidelines: • Each travel expense item must be listed on time sheet, i.e., # of miles traveled, parking costs. • Allowable mileage charge - $.365 • No allowance for meals unless overnight travel is required.

  9. State of Mississippi • Billing Guidelines: • Photocopy expense must be itemized for number of copies – allowable rate $.10/copy. • Amount of time charged for telephone calls made or received must be accurate. Charges for calls more than .3 hours should be explained in next status letter to the Board.

  10. State of Mississippi Billing Guidelines: 14. All billings must be submitted quarterly. Other bills will be returned without comment.

  11. State of North Dakota

  12. Litigation Management In North Dakota, 54% of the amount incurred for tort litigation has been paid to claimant/plaintiff; 46%to pay State’s expenses. $.36 of the dollar to plaintiff; $.64 to both parties’ expenses of litigation

  13. State of North Dakota Liability coverage for state of North Dakota, its agencies and employees provided by the Risk Management Fund. The Fund was established and is governed by the State Tort Claims Act.

  14. State of North Dakota Solicitor General serves as General Counsel for the Fund. Attorney General’s office provides a majority of the defense for the Fund’s claims and lawsuits.

  15. State of North Dakota If specific expertise required, the Fund hires Special Assistant Attorney General (SAAG) to handle defense. State law requires appointment by the Attorney General to represent the State.

  16. State of North Dakota Each biennium we publish an RFP in the Bar Association magazine to update our Roster of defense attorneys interested in representing the State or a state employee. Roster approved by Attorney General and Director of OMB. Not required to hire off the Roster.

  17. State of North Dakota As a part of the RFP we provide copies of the Special Assistant Attorney General (SAAG) Appointment and Representation Agreement and the Billing Policy for the Risk Management Fund. (Both documents attached)

  18. State of North Dakota • To be a part of the program SAAG agrees to: • Be compensated at the rate of $90/hour. • Within 10 days of accepting an appointment submit an initial budget estimating fees and costs. • Comply with terms of AG’s Conflict Policy.

  19. State of North Dakota • To be a part of the program SAAG agrees to: • Agree to the Solicitor General monitoring the litigation. • File any dispositive motions early. • Obtain approval for all settlements. • Obtain approval for appeals, counterclaims, substantive motions.

  20. State of North Dakota • To be a part of the program SAAG agrees to: • Submit quarterly status reports. • Maintain attorney’s professional E&O coverage of $1M/claim and $2M/aggregate. • Report disciplinary actions. • Use AG’s brief bank and permit work product to be included in AG’s bank.

  21. State of North Dakota • To be a part of the program SAAG agrees to: • Comply with State’s records management requirements. • Billing criteria similar to Mississippi’s. (See attached policy.)

  22. State of Missouri

  23. State of Missouri Liability coverage for the state of Missouri, its employees, officers and agencies provided pursuant to the statute creating the State Legal Expense Fund. Section 105.711, RSMo

  24. State of Missouri Attorney General's Office provides the defense for the majority of claims made against individuals and entities covered by the Fund. Attorney General has authority to hire counsel to assist him (Section 27.020, RSMo), including outside counsel with specialized expertise. Section 105.716.4, RSMo.

  25. State of Missouri Attorney General has developed Policies and Procedures for Outside Counsel. Compliance with the Policies and Procedures is required for all outside counsel.

  26. State of Missouri The Policies and Procedures specify that it is a particular attorney that has been appointed and retained by the Attorney General and preapproval may be required for services rendered by other attorneys within the firm of retained counsel.

  27. State of Missouri Outside counsel must agree to consult with a designated representative of the Attorney General's Office at every significant stage in the litigation.

  28. State of Missouri The Attorney General's Office maintains the right to (1) review any document prior to filing, (2) require preapproval before incurring or billing any fee, expense or charge, and to (3) control the selection of any expert or investigator.

  29. State of Missouri Billing Rates and Charges: Current standard rate for general legal services $100.00 p/h Current rate for medical malpractice defense $125.00 p/h Mileage $0.31.5 p/m Duplication and fax charges * reimbursed at the lessor of the standard rate charged to the firm's clients or actual cost. Telephone charges * reimbursed at actual cost.

  30. State of Missouri Handling conflicts – multiple defendants

  31. State of Missouri Ethical issues in supervision

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