Judge: Enron Lawyers Must Provide Records

A federal judge in Texas is ordering lawyers seeking a record $695 million fee in a class-action securities lawsuit to submit records detailing the 247,000 hours they allegedly spent working on the case over the collapse of Enron Corp.

On Wednesday, Judge Melinda Harmon of Houston gave the plaintiffs' attorneys two weeks to file "contemporaneous time or billing records reflecting which tasks were performed, when, and for how long."

The lead plaintiff, the University of California, agreed at the outset to pay the lawyers a sliding percentage, which rose to 10% of amounts over $2 billion. Banks and financial firms paid $7.2 billion in settlements before the Supreme Court invalidated the main legal theory behind the case earlier this year. Judge Harmon's order said she would defer to the percentage fee deal, but only if it produces a reasonable result. She suggested summaries of legal work done by each attorney did not give her enough detail to determine if the $695 million fee is justified.

Objectors, including the State of Texas, have said such an award would be a windfall for the lawyers at the expense of investors. The attorneys contend the case was complicated, risky, and aggressively litigated.