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Article: Court takes up capital case fee issues.
- Article from:
- Florida Bar News
- Article date:
- March 1, 2002
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 Florida Bar. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Judges can increase the compensation for private "registry" attorneys who handle collateral death penalty appeals, despite a state law setting maximum compensation, the Florida Supreme Court has ruled.
In a 4-3 decision released February 14, the justices upheld a circuit judge's declaratory judgement sought by Tallahassee attorney Mark Evan Olive. But the court rejected Olive's contention that limitations in the state contract cause ethical conflicts for registry lawyers.
The dissenters from the opinion said Olive lacked standing to seek a declaratory judgment.
The majority opinion, written by Justice Fred Lewis, said Olive had standing ...