Program Details
2026-08-20 13:00:00
Over 1,000+ webinars
Course Overview
2026-08-20 13:00:00
2h CLE Credits
Intermediate
2
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm ESTThis session examines the pre-judgment tools available to defense counsel seeking to cap or eliminate attorney’s fee exposure under federal fee-shifting statutes. Attorneys will work through Rule 68 offers of judgment, voluntary cessation and mootness strategy, the prevailing-party doctrine following Lackey v. Stinnie, and settlement structuring with fee waivers. Attendees will leave with a sequenced playbook for deploying each tool at the right stage of litigation to minimize the fee petition a plaintiff can ultimately file.
Renée M. Dudek 2:10 pm - 3:10 pm ESTThis session examines the litigation of attorney’s fee petitions under both state and federal fee-shifting statutes or other theories before and after the fee ruling. Attendees will explore the legal framework governing fee orders, including fee/prevailing party entitlement; the lodestar/enhancement methodology; time deadlines for fee proceedings; the anatomy of a fee motion and evidentiary support for the motion; common billing disputes for both sides in a fee motion; anatomy of a fee petition opposition; issues which lead to reductions in a fee request; proposed orders and objections in fee proceedings; and appellate preservation/review issues. Through a practical examination of the issues courts routinely confront, participants will gain insight into how fee petitions are presented, evaluated, challenged, and ultimately decided.
William M. HensleyRenée M. Dudek is a partner in the Philadelphia and Wilmington offices of Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, where her practice combines commercial litigation with direct appeals in federal and state courts. She has served as first- and second-chair trial counsel, argues pivotal motions, and writes briefs that decide cases.
William M. (Mike) Hensley is counsel at FBT Gibbons LLP in Santa Ana, California. A trial lawyer with close to 40 years of experience resolving disputes through trials, arbitrations, mediations, and appeals, he has argued before the U.S. Supreme Court as well as Southern California state and federal courts, and has appeared pro hac vice in federal and state courts across the country.
Renée M. Dudek is a partner in the Philadelphia and Wilmington offices of Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, where her practice combines commercial litigation with direct appeals in federal and state courts. She has served as first- and second-chair trial counsel, argues pivotal motions, and writes briefs that decide cases.
William M. (Mike) Hensley is counsel at FBT Gibbons LLP in Santa Ana, California. A trial lawyer with close to 40 years of experience resolving disputes through trials, arbitrations, mediations, and appeals, he has argued before the U.S. Supreme Court as well as Southern California state and federal courts, and has appeared pro hac vice in federal and state courts across the country.
Requirements
The Alabama State Bar MCLE Commission requires attorneys to complete 12 credits, including 1 ethics, by December 31 of each year. All credits must be reported by February 15 of the following year. A maximum of 12 credits, including 1 ethics credit, may be carried over for 1 year only.
Formats
