It’s not about the money, it’s a matter of principle! — Brown vs. Legal Foundation

It’s not about the money, it’s a matter of principle! — Brown vs. Legal Foundation of Washington (2003)When it comes to hiring an attorney it is not uncommon for the client to pay a retainer.  When this is done the client pays the money up front, but the attorney doesn’t get the money until his legal services are concluded.  In the meantime the money is deposited in a temporary account.  Since the money can sit in the account for as little as a few days, banks will not pay interest on retainer fees. In the 1980’s and 90’s state bar associations began to institute IOLTA accounts (interest on lawyer trust accounts).  Instead of various attorneys depositing their retainers fees in individual accounts, they could collectively deposit their retainers in an IOLTA account owned by the state bar association.  Since money was constantly withdrawn and deposited, this allowed for the account to have a regular balance with which the bank could pay interest on.  Money raised from the interest was used to provide free legal services to the poor.A Washington attorney named Allen D. Brown believed that it was unconstitutional for the state to take that money, but that the interest raised was his, and that taking the money was an infringement of his 5th Amendment Rights.  In 2003 he brought a lawsuit against the Legal Foundation of Washington to the Supreme Court of the United States over interest accrued on his retainer fees.  Keep in mind that to get to the Supreme Court, he had to take his suit through the Washington State courts, appeals court, Washington State Supreme Court, Federal District Court, and Federal Appeals Court.  So how much money was at stake that Brown was willing to navigate the entire US court system?  Drum roll please — $4.96.  Not even enough to buy a five dollar foot long.SCOTUS ruled against Brown in a 5 to 4 decision.  The majority opinion was that the state didn’t take anything from him since he could not have earned the interest on the private market.  Without intervention of IOLTA, the interest would have never been raised in the first place. It wouldn’t even have existed.  Bummer for Brown.On a related note Judge Judy once threw out a case with damages amounting to $25, citing that it was a waste of her time. -- source link

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