Pete Sessions: “I understand that, but the point clearly is this is a cap of $4,000 per hour. It is not a guarantee of $4,000 per hour.…”

“I understand that, but the point clearly is this is a cap of $4,000 per hour. It is not a guarantee of $4,000 per hour. I preferred a cap of $1,000 per hour. The Senator from North Dakota opposed that. So we raised the figure now. I don't see how anybody can complain about this cap. As to this arbitration agreement, it either does one of two things: It either violates the contracts and, therefore, the legislation written by the Senator from North Dakota has, in fact, undertaken to override the fee written agreement between the attorneys general and their plaintiff lawyers; or it does not. I am afraid, however, that it doesn't do what the Senator from North Dakota suggests, because the way I read it, the only complaint that can be made is when the attorney general disagrees with the amount of the fee with the lawyer he hired. The exact language is: With respect to any dispute that may arise between them regarding the fee agreement, the matter shall be submitted to arbitration. So, I am not sure that this arbitration agreement has any impact whatever on attorneys' fees. The only thing that would happen is some judges may find it unconscionable and just refuse to enforce it. That is obvious to us, that many of these agreements are unconscionable and ought not to be enforced. With regard to the Florida fee where the judge held it to be unconscionable, those lawyers have worked a pretty good while on that case. They have done a pretty good amount of work.”