Village of Shorewood v. Steinberg

In Village of Shorewood v. Steinberg, 174 Wis. 2d 191, 204, 496 N.W.2d 57 (1993), the supreme court reviewed an award of attorney fees under an eminent domain statute, Wis. Stat. 32.28, authorizing a court to award "reasonable" and "necessary" attorney fees under certain conditions. The court held that for eminent domain cases, courts should use "a contingency fee agreement as a guide only and must consider all the circumstances of the case to determine whether the contingency fee amount is a just and reasonable figure." Village of Shorewood, 174 Wis. 2d at 204. The court then looked to SCR 20:1.5(a) as a guide for assessing the reasonableness of attorney fees. 4 See Village of Shorewood, 174 Wis. 2d at 204.