Generally accepted principles and authority for the assessment of accounts

Fontaine v. Duboff Edwards Haight & Schachter, 2012 ONCA 471 was released today.  It is a helpful case dealing with assessments and particularly restates the general considerations to be used on assessments as follows:

“generally accepted principles and authority for the assessment of accounts, including the following:

a.            time expended by legal counsel;

b.            the legal complexity of the matters;

c.            the degree of responsibility assumed by legal counsel;

d.            the monetary value of the matters at issue;

e.            the importance of the matter to the claimant;

f.             the degree of skill and competence demonstrated by the legal counsel;

g.            the results achieved and the contribution of legal counsel to the result;

h.            the ability of the claimant to pay; and

i.              the claimant’s expectations as to the amount of the legal fees,”