ALJ/KOT/gd2 Date of Issuance 2/5/2010

Decision 10-02-008 February 4, 2010

BEFORE THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

Application of Southern California Edison Company (U338E) for Authority to Institute a Rate Stabilization Plan with a Rate Increase and End of Rate Freeze Tariffs.	Application 00-11-038 (Filed November 16, 2000)
Emergency Application of Pacific Gas and Electric Company (U39E) to Adopt a Rate Stabilization Plan.	Application 00-11-056 (Filed November 22, 2000)
Petition of The Utility Reform Network for Modification of Resolution E-3527.	Application 00-10-028 (Filed October 17, 2000)

DECISION AWARDING INTERVENOR COMPENSATION
(HOURLY RATES FOR OUTSIDE COUNSEL USED BY INTERVENOR IN OBTAINING JUDICIAL REVIEW)

DECISION AWARDING INTERVENOR COMPENSATION
(HOURLY RATES FOR OUTSIDE COUNSEL USED BY INTERVENOR
IN OBTAINING JUDICIAL REVIEW) 11

1. Summary 22

2. Background 33

3. Legal and Factual Issues Regarding Outside Counsel Rates 44

3.1. Legal Standard for Setting Hourly Rates 44

3.2. TURN's Showing and the Commission's Initial Response 55

3.3. Direction from the Court of Appeal 77

3.4. Need for Additional Information 77

3.5. Statements Supporting the Settlement 1010

3.6. Resolution of Issues Regarding Outside Counsel Rates 1111

4. Award 1414

5. Waiver of Comment Period 1515

6. Assignment of Proceeding 1515

Findings of Fact 1515

Conclusions of Law 1616

ORDER 1717

APPENDIX A - Section A. - D.05-04-049

APPENDIX B - Compensation Decision Summary Information

DECISION AWARDING INTERVENOR COMPENSATION
(HOURLY RATES FOR OUTSIDE COUNSEL USED BY INTERVENOR IN OBTAINING JUDICIAL REVIEW)

1. Summary

This decision resolves an outstanding issue from a request for compensation by The Utility Reform Network (TURN) for its work in obtaining judicial review in these consolidated proceedings. On remand from the California Court of Appeal (Second Appellate District), and relying in part on a settlement between TURN and certain utilities, the decision adopts increased hourly rates for outside counsel used by TURN for this work. Because the decision approves a settlement under which TURN agrees to forego certain interest that would otherwise be due, the decision does not include interest on the award calculated from the increased hourly rates.

Neither the court's decision nor today's decision makes any change to the hourly rate schedules that we have adopted and consistently applied for several years in determining reasonable hourly rates for intervenor's in-house staff and outside representatives. As the court noted, these schedules relate to the practice of administrative law, and specifically to litigation services before this Commission.¹ Only in the highly unusual circumstances underlying today's decision will an intervenor's use of other kinds of litigation services be compensable under the intervenor compensation statute, and thus suggest consideration of an alternative hourly rate schedule.

This proceeding remains open to consider a later request for compensation by TURN concerning its judicial review work subsequently performed in these consolidated proceedings.²

¹ The Utility Reform Network v. Public Utilities Commission (2008) 166 Cal. App. 4th at 522, 537 (hereafter, TURN v. PUC).

² Today's decision on outside counsel rates resolves the only issue remaining from TURN's June 2004 request. TURN's later request (filed in February 2009) seeks compensation for judicial review work performed in these proceedings after the period covered by the original award in (Decision 05-04-049) responding to the earlier request.