Author: Nick Riseman

February 26, 2026 The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has vacated a $4.5 million fee reduction, ruling that a winning law firm’s size cannot be used to justify lower fees and declaring that “brilliance at the bar” is not measure by the number of associates a lawyer commands. Read more

February 25, 2026 District courts cannot reduce fee awards to attorneys based on a firm’s size, the Ninth Circuit ruled in a published opinion on Tuesday, sending a case back to a California federal court to recalculate attorney fees awarded to a “small” firm that represented wholesalers in a Robinson-Patman Act suit against eye drop…

February 25, 2026 The Ninth Circuit just made clear, size isn’t everything. And pretending otherwise is just compensating for something else entirely. Read more

February 24, 2026 A federal appeals court on Tuesday ruled that a trial judge in California improperly slashed the hourly rates sought by a small law firm after it won an antitrust case, saying that a law firm’s size cannot be used to justify awarding lower fees. Read more

October 21, 2025 Family-owned wholesalers have told the Ninth Circuit that a lower court added new requirements with its latest ruling rejecting allegations that the maker of 5-Hour Energy violated price discrimination law by providing Costco with disproportionate promotional support. Read more

October 9, 2025 A case waiting for a ruling from the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit asks a controversial question: Should judges award smaller fees to lawyers working at small law firms than those working at large firms? Read more

A U.S. appeals court is weighing whether law firm size should factor into attorney fee awards, after a judge refused to grant Big Law-caliber rates to lawyers at a small firm for fear of setting a precedent for other cases. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments this summer and may…

September 9, 2025 Two former University of San Francisco women’s basketball players won their appeal of an earlier court ruling in their lawsuit against head coach Molly Goodenbour and the school, reinstating $500,000 in punitive damages to Marija Galic. Read more

September 4, 2025 A California appeals court has reinstated $500,000 in punitive damages for former University of San Francisco women’s basketball player Marija Galic and ordered a new trial for her twin sister, Marta, in a case alleging years of verbal and emotional abuse by head coach Molly Goodenbour. Read more

August 5th, 2025 Gaw | Poe Partner Randolph Gaw appeared before the 1st District Court of Appeals in a case that has drawn media attention. In his opening statement, Randy argued that when Marija prevailed at trial, the court wrongly set aside her punitive damages verdict — and that the decision should be reversed. Watch…