Honorable Timothy A. Barnes
Chapter 11
FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW IN SUPPORT OF ORDER AWARDING TO OPTIMUS FINANCIAL SERVICES, LLC, FINANCIAL ADVISORS FOR DEBTORS, FOR ALLOWANCE AND PAYMENT OF FIRST INTERIM COMPENSATION AND REIMBURSEMENT OF EXPENSES
| TOTAL FEES REQUESTED: |
$ 114,660.00 |
TOTAL COSTS REQUESTED: |
$0.00 |
| TOTAL FEES REDUCED: |
$ 13,779.00 |
TOTAL COSTS REDUCED: |
$0.00 |
| TOTAL FEES ALLOWED: |
$ 100,881.00 |
TOTAL COSTS ALLOWED: |
$0.00 |
TOTAL FEES AND COSTS ALLOWED: $ 100,
881.00 The attached time and expense entries have been underlined to reflect disallowance in whole or in part. The basis for each disallowance is reflected by numerical notations that appear on the left of each underlined entry. The numerical notations correspond to the enumerated paragraphs below.
(1) Insufficient Description - TOTAL of disallowed amounts: $ 13,
500.00
The Court denies the allowance of compensation for the indicated task(s) as the description of each task fails to identify in a reasonable manner the service rendered. In re Pettibone, 74 B.R. 293, 301 (Bankr. N.D. Ill. 1987) (Schmetterer, J.) ("A proper fee application must list each activity, its date, the attorney who performed the work, a description of the nature and substance of the work performed, and the time spent on the work. [Citation omitted] Records which give no explanation of the activities performed are not compensable."); In re Wildman, 72 B.R. 700, 708-9 (Bankr. N.D. Ill. 1987) (Schmetterer, J.) (same).
In this case, entries for reading emails or conversations without descriptions of how the email related to the case are not compensable.
(2) Lumping - TOTAL of disallowed amounts (10% of affected entries): $ 264.00
The Court may impose a ten percent penalty on entries that appear to be "lumping." The Court will reduce each entry marked as such per the penalty. In re Wildman, 72 B.R. 700, 709 (Bankr. N.D. Ill. 1987) (Schmetterer, J.) ("Applicants may not circumvent the minimum time requirement or any of the requirements of detail by "lumping" a bunch of activities into a single entry, [citation omitted]. Each type of service should be listed with the corresponding specific time allotment.").
(3) Improper Time Increments for Billing - TOTAL of disallowed amounts: $ 15.00
The court may impose a ten percent penalty for using improper time increments for billing. "Professional persons . . . cannot, in all honesty and reasonableness, charge their clients for increments in excess of one-tenth of an hour." In re Wildman, 72 B.R. 700, 726 (Bankr. N.D. Ill. 1987) (Schmetterer, J.). This penalty will be imposed where time increments larger than one-tenth of an hour are being used. For example, applicants who bill time using quarter-hour increments risk the ten percent penalty.
In this case, many of the entries in this category and other categories appear to have been billed in quarter-hour increments. Dated: March 2, 2016
/s/_________
Timothy A. Barnes
United States Bankruptcy Judge
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