A recent American Lawyer story by Chris Johnson, “Dechert Client Fee Dispute to Proceed After Court Rules $20M Legal Bill ‘Highly Unrealistc’,” reports that Dechert has been dealt a blow in its long-running fee dispute with a former client, with a High Court judge in the U.K. ruling that the company can proceed in its attempt to recover millions of dollars from the firm.

Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation accused Dechert of "systematic and gross overcharging" after the firm billed the London-based mining company $20.3 million for 23 months of work relating to a criminal investigation by the U.K.'s Serious Fraud Office.  The judge said that Dechert's fee estimates were "considerably awry on every occasion" and were based on "highly unrealistic" assumptions.

The dispute will now move to formal cost assessment proceedings, which an ENRC spokesman said are likely to take place early next year.  ENRC, which is being represented by London disputes boutique Signature Litigation, is disputing $14.5 million of Dechert's total fee.

The ENRC spokesman said the company was "pleased" with the ruling.  "We have always been concerned about the level of charging by Dechert, but felt unable to challenge these while our internal investigation was underway," he added.  A Dechert spokeswoman said: "We look forward now to proceeding with the costs assessment process."

The judgment also revealed that DLA Piper, which was originally hired by ENRC to work on the internal corruption probe, had estimated that its fees on the matter would come to around $500,000.

DLA's lead partner on the dispute, Neil Gerrard, took the case with him to Dechert when he joined the firm in 2011.  Dechert was subsequently fired by ENRC in April 2013, with the company initiating proceedings against the firm that fall.

In a letter to The American Lawyer last May, Dechert general counsel Arthur Newbold said that ENRC's allegations were "outrageous and unfounded."  Dechert had previously failed in two separate attempts to have the cost proceedings heard in public.  ENRC successfully argued that a public hearing could have potentially damaging consequences for the company's ongoing fraud office investigation.