Opinion
SC: 150887
09-30-2015
In re Attorney Fees of JOHN W. UJLAKY PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. SHAWN DOUGLAS SIMPSON, Defendant, and JOHN W. UJLAKY, Appellant.
Order
Robert P. Young, Jr., Chief Justice Stephen J. Markman Mary Beth Kelly Brian K. Zahra Bridget M. McCormack David F. Viviano Richard H. Bernstein, Justices COA: 316494
Kent CC: 11-002833-FC
On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the October 23, 2014 judgment of the Court of Appeals is considered and, pursuant to MCR 7.305(H)(1), in lieu of granting leave to appeal, we REVERSE the judgment of the Court of Appeals as to Docket No. 316494, and we REMAND this case to the Kent Circuit Court for a determination of the reasonableness of the attorney fees requested. The trial court applied the county's fee schedule, which capped compensation for plea cases at $660, but did not address at all the reasonableness of the fee in relation to the actual services rendered, as itemized by the appellant. See In re Recorder's Court Bar Ass'n, 443 Mich 110, 131 (1993). Although the expenditure of any amount of time beyond that contemplated by the schedule for the typical case does not, ipso facto, warrant extra fees, spending a significant but reasonable number of hours beyond the norm may. On remand, the trial court shall either award the requested fees, or articulate on the record its basis for concluding that such fees are not reasonable. See, e.g., In re Attorney Fees of Mullkoff, 176 Mich App 82, 85-88 (1989), and In re Attorney Fees of Jamnik, 176 Mich App 827, 831 (1989).
We do not retain jurisdiction.
I, Larry S. Royster, Clerk of the Michigan Supreme Court, certify that the foregoing is a true and complete copy of the order entered at the direction of the Court.
September 30, 2015
/s/_________
Clerk