Summary 2013 WY 9

Summary of Decision January 25, 2013

Justice Golden delivered the opinion for the Court. Affirmed.

Case Name: IN THE MATTER OF ATTORNEY’S FEES AND COSTS IN THE TERMINATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS TO: NRF and JWF, Minor Children, DONALD LEE TOLIN, Attorney for LMB, Natural Mother v. STATE OF WYOMING, DEPARTMENT OF FAMILY SERVICES.

Docket Number: S-12-0067

URL: http://www.courts.state.wy.us/Opinions.aspx

Appeal from the District Court of Natrona County, Honorable Catherine E. Wilking, Judge.

Representing Appellant: Donald Lee Tolin, Law Offices of Donald Tolin, Casper, Wyoming.

Representing Appellee: Gregory A. Phillips, Wyoming Attorney General; Robin Sessions Cooley, Deputy Attorney General; Jill E. Kucera, Senior Assistant Attorney General; Susan K. Stipe, Senior Assistant Attorney General.

Date of Decision: January 25, 2013

Facts: Attorney Donald L. Tolin, who was court appointed to represent an indigent parent in a parental rights termination action filed by the State of Wyoming, Department of Family Services (DFS), which is a state agency legislatively obligated to pay for the costs of the action including the indigent parent’s attorney fee, Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 14-2-318(a) and (b) (LexisNexis 2011), appealed the district court’s fifty percent reduction of his requested amount of attorney fees for his representation in this action.

Issue: Mr. Tolin states the issue as:

Whether or not the [district court] abused its discretion in cutting attorney’s fees by 50% and whether or not its decision was unsupported by the evidence, arbitrary, and capricious.

Holdings: Having laboriously reviewed the record in light of the district court’s decision letter, Mr. Tolin’s contentions, and the considerations set forth in this opinion, the Court held that the district court did not abuse its discretion when it reduced Mr. Tolin’s fee application by fifty percent.

Summaries are prepared by Law Librarians and are not official statements of the Wyoming Supreme Court

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