Latest news with #AmyMorse
Globe and Mail
23-05-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
'A 57 ½ Hour Workday': Ford Targets Law Firms Over Lemon Law Billing, Ford Stock (NYSE:F) Notches Up
While the phrase 'Time Lawyer' might sound like an interesting, if wildly unconventional, title for a science fiction novel, it is the kind of unexpected reality legacy automaker Ford (F) found itself facing. It took aim at several law firms in California over their billing in cases involving the state's 'Lemon Law.' Investors seemed pleased enough with Ford fighting back, and shares notched up fractionally in Thursday afternoon's trading. Confident Investing Starts Here: Ford took aim at nine separate defendants in a Los Angeles federal court, referring to the defendants' billing processes as a 'magical mystery tour' of what one report called '…fraudulent…inflat(ion)…' Ford alleged that the l awyers involved spread their time over what reports called 'thousands of cases' against 'several automakers' so that the behavior in question would go unnoticed. Perhaps the centerpiece of Ford's counterattack is the claim that, somehow, one attorney managed to turn in 57.5 billable hours…in one day. And yes, a day still contains 24 hours, leaving it physically impossible for any one attorney to turn in more billable hours than there are hours in a day. Further, reports noted, the time-traveling lawyer in question–Amy Morse with Knight Law Group–was not the only such temporally-gifted entity the law firms employed. In fact, 'numerous' instances of lawyers billing more than 24 hours in any one day emerged. One lawyer apparently managed to bill 29 hours in one day, as said lawyer '…prepare(d) for, travel(ed) to, and attend(ed) two trials…' in one day that were located around 400 miles apart. Jack Cooper, Back From the Dead….Sort Of Not so long ago, we had a report about a company that has a lot of connection with Ford: Jack Cooper. The car hauler was unceremoniously shut down after Ford pulled most of its contracts with the firm. But apparently, a former Jack Cooper employee, McKinley Archie, did not take this lying down. Archie, along with three others, gathered capital together and started Squirrelly LLC, a car hauling company. One of Squirrelly's first deals was with Ford, the reports noted, and now, the former Jack Cooper employee who started his own firm, along with a collection of other, close friends and colleagues, is back hauling Ford. So far, the reports note, the former Jack Cooper employees have hauled 17 loads to dealerships in Michigan, and nine loads to Texas dealerships. Is Ford Stock a Good Buy Right Now? Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on F stock based on two Buys, 12 Holds and three Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 13.46% loss in its share price over the past year, the average F price target of $9.59 per share implies 8.58% downside risk. See more F analyst ratings Disclosure
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Ford accuses law firms of fraudulent overbilling, including a 57-1/2 hour workday
By Jonathan Stempel (Reuters) - Ford sued several California lawyers and law firms on Wednesday, accusing them of fraudulently inflating their legal fees under that state's Lemon Law, including one instance where a lawyer allegedly billed 57-1/2 hours in one day. In a complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court against nine defendants, Ford called the alleged improper billings a "magical mystery tour" of bogus work and time entries, spread across thousands of cases against several automakers so they would go undetected. Ford said the law firm Knight Law Group anchored the scheme, regularly bringing in other law firms to overstaff cases, sometimes with 10 to 15 lawyers. The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker said it lost at least $100 million from the scheme over five years. It is seeking at least $300 million in damages for alleged violations of the federal anti-racketeering law known as RICO. Requests for comment on behalf of the defendants were not immediately returned. The complaint identified "numerous" alleged instances of lawyers billing more than 24 hours in a single day. Ford said the 57-1/2 hours that Knight partner Amy Morse allegedly billed on November 30, 2016 included 12.9 hours on "requests for admission," where parties ask opponents to admit that facts are true or documents are authentic. The automaker said another lawyer allegedly billed 29 hours to prepare for, travel to and attend two trials on the same day in Los Angeles and near San Francisco, about 400 miles apart. California's Lemon Law, the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, lets lawyers collect legal fees based on reasonably incurred time spent representing vehicle owners. The case is Ford Motor Co v Knight Law Group LLP et al, U.S. District Court, Central District of California, No. 25-04550.
Globe and Mail
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Globe and Mail
Ford accuses law firms of fraudulent overbilling, including a 57-1/2 hour workday
Ford sued several California lawyers and law firms on Wednesday, accusing them of fraudulently inflating their legal fees under that state's Lemon Law, including one instance where a lawyer allegedly billed 57-1/2 hours in one day. In a complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court against nine defendants, Ford called the alleged improper billings a 'magical mystery tour' of bogus work and time entries, spread across thousands of cases against several auto makers so they would go undetected. Ford said the law firm Knight Law Group anchored the scheme, regularly bringing in other law firms to overstaff cases, sometimes with 10 to 15 lawyers. The Dearborn, Michigan-based auto maker said it lost at least $100 million from the scheme over five years. It is seeking at least $300 million in damages for alleged violations of the federal anti-racketeering law known as RICO. Requests for comment on behalf of the defendants were not immediately returned. The complaint identified 'numerous' alleged instances of lawyers billing more than 24 hours in a single day. Ford said the 57-1/2 hours that Knight partner Amy Morse allegedly billed on November 30, 2016 included 12.9 hours on 'requests for admission,' where parties ask opponents to admit that facts are true or documents are authentic. The auto maker said another lawyer allegedly billed 29 hours to prepare for, travel to and attend two trials on the same day in Los Angeles and near San Francisco, about 400 miles apart. California's Lemon Law, the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, lets lawyers collect legal fees based on reasonably incurred time spent representing vehicle owners. The case is Ford Motor Co v. Knight Law Group LLP et al, U.S. District Court, Central District of California, No. 25-04550.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Ford accuses law firms of fraudulent overbilling, including a 57-1/2 hour workday
By Jonathan Stempel (Reuters) - Ford sued several California lawyers and law firms on Wednesday, accusing them of fraudulently inflating their legal fees under that state's Lemon Law, including one instance where a lawyer allegedly billed 57-1/2 hours in one day. In a complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court against nine defendants, Ford called the alleged improper billings a "magical mystery tour" of bogus work and time entries, spread across thousands of cases against several automakers so they would go undetected. Ford said the law firm Knight Law Group anchored the scheme, regularly bringing in other law firms to overstaff cases, sometimes with 10 to 15 lawyers. The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker said it lost at least $100 million from the scheme over five years. It is seeking at least $300 million in damages for alleged violations of the federal anti-racketeering law known as RICO. Requests for comment on behalf of the defendants were not immediately returned. The complaint identified "numerous" alleged instances of lawyers billing more than 24 hours in a single day. Ford said the 57-1/2 hours that Knight partner Amy Morse allegedly billed on November 30, 2016 included 12.9 hours on "requests for admission," where parties ask opponents to admit that facts are true or documents are authentic. The automaker said another lawyer allegedly billed 29 hours to prepare for, travel to and attend two trials on the same day in Los Angeles and near San Francisco, about 400 miles apart. California's Lemon Law, the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, lets lawyers collect legal fees based on reasonably incurred time spent representing vehicle owners. The case is Ford Motor Co v Knight Law Group LLP et al, U.S. District Court, Central District of California, No. 25-04550. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Ford accuses law firms of fraudulent overbilling, including a 57-1/2 hour workday
By Jonathan Stempel (Reuters) - Ford sued several California lawyers and law firms on Wednesday, accusing them of fraudulently inflating their legal fees under that state's Lemon Law, including one instance where a lawyer allegedly billed 57-1/2 hours in one day. In a complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court against nine defendants, Ford called the alleged improper billings a "magical mystery tour" of bogus work and time entries, spread across thousands of cases against several automakers so they would go undetected. Ford said the law firm Knight Law Group anchored the scheme, regularly bringing in other law firms to overstaff cases, sometimes with 10 to 15 lawyers. The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker said it lost at least $100 million from the scheme over five years. It is seeking at least $300 million in damages for alleged violations of the federal anti-racketeering law known as RICO. Requests for comment on behalf of the defendants were not immediately returned. The complaint identified "numerous" alleged instances of lawyers billing more than 24 hours in a single day. Ford said the 57-1/2 hours that Knight partner Amy Morse allegedly billed on November 30, 2016 included 12.9 hours on "requests for admission," where parties ask opponents to admit that facts are true or documents are authentic. The automaker said another lawyer allegedly billed 29 hours to prepare for, travel to and attend two trials on the same day in Los Angeles and near San Francisco, about 400 miles apart. California's Lemon Law, the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, lets lawyers collect legal fees based on reasonably incurred time spent representing vehicle owners. The case is Ford Motor Co v Knight Law Group LLP et al, U.S. District Court, Central District of California, No. 25-04550. Sign in to access your portfolio
