In a characteristically astringent opinion Massachusetts Appeals Court Judge Brown called out excessive legal expenses as wasteful.
Here, again we witness another puzzling situation in which the legal fees paid and awarded far exceed any amount that would be gained. … it is often beneficial to the parties, and counsel in advising their clients, to step back and take stock of what the case is about, what has gone on before and what may lie ahead. In devising the judicial playbook one should not forget the pocketbook. …it is not brilliance that iis require here – it is simply “arithmetic.” Cf. W.I. Cowin, Reflections in Retirement, 66 Boston Bar J. 13, 14, (2011) (“technical competence of lawyers to litigate is greater today than ever, but lawyers often “fail to consider whether doing it is useful”).
Brown, J concurring Cooper v Keto 83 Mass. App. Ct. 798 (2013)