A recent Houston Chronicle story, “Spill Fund Legal Fees So Far: $2.5 Million” reports that Kenneth Feinberg and his law firm, Feinberg Rosen, LLP in Washington, have been paid more than $2.5 million in attorney fees for over 3 months for work in compensating the victims of the BP oil spill.  BP agreed to pay Feinberg Rozen a fee of $850,000 a month.  Feinberg Rozen retained former U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey and his firm, Debevoise & Plimpton, LLP, to evaluate the attorney fee package.  Mukasey said the payment was reasonable for the demanding work.

William Brennan, a principle with consulting firm Altman Weil said the compensation put Feinberg Rozen on par with the top U.S. law firms where attorneys generate $1 million or more in annual revenue.  “That’s a heck of a lot of money for any law firm,” he said.  “Considering Feinberg’s expertise in this particular area, it’s not unreasonable that he would charge that amount.”  The $850,000 monthly payments to Feinberg’s firm will continue through year-end and then will be reviewed.