Best Practices and Ethical Considerations When Negotiating, Drafting, and Enforcing Engagement Agreements

Lindsay H. Tasher is Managing Director at Wyatt Partners, where she focuses her time on attorney fee expert witness work, advising major corporations and law firms on the development of litigation budget programs and billing guidelines, and assessing and evaluating the reasonableness of attorney’s fees in complex litigation in federal and state court throughout the United States. Prior to her work with Wyatt, Lindsay was in private practice in two law firms – one in New York and one in New Jersey. She handled all types of civil litigation, with an emphasis on aviation mass-tort law and wrongful death/personal injury claims against airlines and their insurers. She also gained experience in product liability and asbestos defense litigation, as well as various commercial claims under both New York and Jersey state and federal law, including claims for breach of contract, fraud, negligence, and breach of fiduciary duty.

Lindsay received her undergraduate degree in English from Princeton University in 2000 and her law degree from The George Washington University Law School in 2005. She currently serves on the board of Cancer Hope Network as co-chair of the Marketing Committee and Golf Committees (and, for several years, served as General Counsel), a not-for-profit organization that provides free and one-on-one support to cancer patients and their families.

Lindsay also served several terms on the George Washington University Law School Alumni Association Executive Board of Directors, and currently serves as Chair of the Barrister’s Society.

Samuel L. Tasher is Managing Director at Wyatt Partners. In this capacity, Samuel provides expert analysis and opinions on the reasonableness of attorneys’ fees in complex litigation around the world, and serves as an advisor to major corporations and law firms on the development and implementation of billing guidelines and other tools to manage their legal spend. Samuel also serves as the General Counsel of Cloud X Partners, LLC (a cloud technology company), for which he manages its legal matters and supervises its outside counsel for litigation and corporate governance. Samuel is also a frequent lecturer on legal ethics and attorneys’ fees around the country. Samuel received his A.B. (cum laude), J.D., and LL.M. from Duke University.

While at Duke, Samuel spent several years working for Duke University’s Athletics Department in various capacities, including the Compliance Office and Legal Department. Samuel spent a summer in the legal department of the New York Yankees. Samuel is licensed to practice law in New York, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia.

Steven A. Tasher is one of the nation’s leading experts on legal fee matters. He is the Chief Executive Officer of Wyatt Partners, a multi-faceted legal services company. As CEO, he serves as an expert, assessing and evaluating the reasonableness of attorneys' fees and expenses in complex litigation in federal and state courts throughout the United States and as an advisor to major corporations and law firms on the development and implementation of billing guidelines, litigation budget and bill review programs. His entire legal career has focused around the handling and supervision of major litigation throughout the world.

Before launching Wyatt Partners, Steven served as Vice President and Associate General Counsel of Wyeth and as Senior Vice President of its pharmaceutical division. His responsibilities included the supervision of five global operating departments of the company as well as supervision of the company’s major litigation.

Prior to Wyeth, he was a partner in two major international law firms, Donovan Leisure Newton & Irvine and Willkie Farr & Gallagher, an in-house counsel for the DuPont Company and Deputy Attorney General for the State of New Jersey where he handled major litigation and appellate matters and served as Chief Counsel to four cabinet officers.

Steven currently sits on the boards of several corporate, philanthropic and academic institutions and is an adjunct faculty member at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. His educational background includes a B.A. degree with honors from Rutgers University and a J.D. degree with honors from the George Washington University Law School.