An Inclusive Litany

3/19/96

The elite San Francisco law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati was honored for performing pro bono work providing "extraordinary" services to the poor "with no expectation of being paid." They were given the award for a case in which, the Wall Street Journal reported, the firm requested $7.6 million in fees, took the state to court when it wouldn't pay, and eventually got $3.5 million from taxpayers.

[Ed.: They only received the lower figure because a state audit revealed that their first bid included an attorney's bill for a 44-hour day, at $160 per hour.]