It happens to the best of us, happened to me and now it has happened to Thomas Puccio Esq. a well renowned attorney...."No contemporaneous time sheets, no fee"! Ouch! Perhaps the worst feeling in the practice of law is when you exert tremendous effort, obtain a successful result for your clients but due to a technicality your fee is taken away.
In Civil Rights cases, class actions and employment discrimination cases, there are "no ifs, ands or buts"...You either keep contemporaneous time sheets or you are sh_t out of luck! The firms who do the work all the time keep time sheets diligently...It's the firms who don't regularly practice in these areas that don't keep thorough, contemporaneous time sheets.
Mr. Puccio who tried a case and was successful under the Fair Labor Standards Act did not keep time sheets. He originally sought $2 million in fees and was rebuffed by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. On remand he was awarded $515,000 by Judge Scheindlin, the trial Judge. The second Circuit vacated that award and effectively took away his fees. Very expensive lesson. Mr. Puccio, with all due respect should have known better!
The Appeals Court has sent a clear message; The absence of contemporaneous time sheets will not be tolerated. "No ticki , no washi"!
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