Daniels v. Vermont Center for Crime Victims Services

Plaintiff Elizabeth Daniels appeals from the Bennington Superior Court’s Rule 12(b)(6) dismissal of her declaratory judgment action. Plaintiff, a crime victim, was compensated by the defendant, Vermont Center for Crime Victims Services (CCVS), under the Compensation to Victims of Crime Act, 13 V.S.A. §§5351-5361. Thereafter, she recovered substantial damages from the perpetrator’s employer in the settlement of a personal injury action, and offered to repay CCVS only if CCVS bore a proportionate share of attorney’s fees under the common fund exception to the American Rule on attorney’s fees.…