Cris v. American Cancer Society

OPINION

By the Court, Maupin, J.:

In this appeal, we consider a long-standing local practice in Clark County, Nevada, under which district judges routinely award attorney fees in probate matters based upon the gross value of the decedent’s estate.

We hold that an agreement between an estate and its counsel, providing for payment to counsel of 5 percent of the estate’s gross value, is not per se reasonable. Thus, district courts exercising judicial oversight in probate matters must independently review challenged fee agreements for reasonableness under NRS 150.060(1) and Supreme Court Rule 155(1).