Florida Senate - 2012                          SENATOR AMENDMENT
       Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1860
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Barcode 185654                          
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                                       .                                
                                       .                                
                                       .                                
                 Floor: WD/2R          .                                
             03/06/2012 04:42 PM       .                                
       —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————




       —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
       Senator Richter moved the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment to Amendment (435312) (with title
    2  amendment)
    3  
    4         Delete lines 771 - 776
    5  and insert:
    6         (8) APPLICABILITY OF PROVISION REGULATING ATTORNEY
    7  ATTORNEY’S FEES.—With respect to any dispute under the
    8  provisions of ss. 627.730-627.7405 between the insured and the
    9  insurer, or between an assignee of an insured’s rights and the
   10  insurer, the provisions of ss. s. 627.428 and 768.79 shall
   11  apply, except as provided in subsections (10) and (15), and
   12  except that any attorney fees recovered must:
   13         (a) Comply with prevailing professional standards;
   14         (b) Appropriately discount the attorney fees for work
   15  performed, or capable of being performed, by a paralegal or
   16  legal assistant;
   17         (c) Not overstate or inflate the number of hours reasonably
   18  necessary for a case of comparable skill or complexity; and
   19         (d) Represent legal services that are reasonable and
   20  necessary to achieve the result obtained.
   21  
   22  Upon request by either party, a judge must make written
   23  findings, substantiated by evidence presented at trial or any
   24  hearings associated therewith, that any award of attorney fees
   25  complies with this subsection. Notwithstanding s. 627.428, the
   26  attorney fees recovered under ss. 627.730-627.7405 must be
   27  calculated without regard to a contingency risk multiplier.
   28  
   29  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
   30         And the title is amended as follows:
   31         Delete line 743
   32  and insert:
   33         protection benefits; providing exceptions; providing
   34         criteria for the award of attorney fees; prohibiting
   35         the use of a contingency risk multiplier; requiring