White v. Mcbrid

937 S.W.2d 796 (1996)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

White (P) was an attorney at law and made an agreement with Kasper McGrory to probate Kasper's wife will in Shelby County, Tennessee. P was to be paid $2,500 in retainer and one-third of the gross recovery above and in excess of the retainer. Under Tennessee law, Kasper as surviving spouse was allowed to elect to take a 1/3 share of the deceased spouse's estate despite provisions in a will. P filed a petition in County court, and eventually, the court took control of the situation, but before the probate could be finished, Kasper died. Kasper's will left virtually all of his property to the Catholic Diocese of Memphis and named McBride executor of his will. Because the wife's estate had not yet been distributed, McBride's attorney offered to pay P a reasonable attorney fee so that that estate could be taken over by McBride's attorney. P refused and cited his contingent contract with Kasper. Kasper's estate filed a petition to substitute attorneys and for a hearing to determine a reasonable fee. P filed suit against Kasper's estate for $108,291.00. McBride (D) filed an exception to this claim as a violation of DR 2-106. The court ruled that P could not recover under the contract but could under quantum meruit and awarded P $12,500 for 114 hours of work at $150 per hour. D appealed.