ML020420292

Declaration of David R. Luster in Support of Heller Ehrman White & Mcauliffe Llp'S Second Interim Fee Application for Allowance and Payment of Compensation and Reimbursement of Expenses for the Period August 1, 2001, Through November 30, 20

ML020420292
Person / Time
Site:	Diablo Canyon
Issue date:	01/14/2002
From:	Luster D Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe, LLP
To:	Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, US Federal Judiciary, Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of California
References
01-30923 DM, 94-0742640
Download: ML020420292 (8)

Text

1 MARIE L. FIALA (No. 79676)

PETER J. BENVENUTTI (No. 60566) 2 ADAM M. COLE (No. 145344)

HELLER EHRMAN WHITE & McAULIFFE LLP 3 333 Bush Street San Francisco, California 94104-2878 4 Telephone: (415) 772-6000 Facsimile: (415) 772-6268 5

6 Special Counsel for Debtor in Possession PACIFIC GAS AND ELECTRIC COMPANY 7

8 UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT 9

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 SAN FRANCISCO DIVISION 11 12 In re Case No.: 01-30923 DM 13 Chapter 11 Case 14 PACIFIC GAS AND ELECTRIC COMPANY, a California corporation, 15 Debtor. Judge: Hon. Dennis Montali 16 Date: February 26, 2002 Time: 9:30 a.m.

17 Federal I.D. No. 94-0742640 18 EHRMAN DECLARATION OF DAVID R. LUSTER IN SUPPORT OF HELLER 19 WHITE & McAULIFFE LLP'S SECOND INTERIM FEE APPLICATION 20 FOR ALLOWANCE AND PAYMENT OF COMPENSATION AND REIMBURSEMENT OF EXPENSES FOR THE PERIOD 21 AUGUST 1, 2001, THROUGH NOVEMBER 30, 2001 22 I, David R. Luster, declare:

LLP 23 1. I am a Senior Litigation Paralegal at Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe in support of 24 ("Heller Ehrman") in San Francisco, California. I submit this declaration Payment of 25 Heller Ehrman's Second Interim Fee Application for Allowance and 1, 2001, Through 26 Compensation and Reimbursement of Expenses for the Period August indicated, I have personal 27 November 30, 2001 (the "Application Period"). Unless otherwise to the truth of said Heller 28 knowledge of the matters set forth herein and could and would testify Ehrman White & DECLARATION OF DAVID R. LUSTER IN SUPPORT OF McAuliffe LLP HELLER EHRMAN'S SECOND INTERIM FEE APPLICATION 7

CASE NO.: 01-30923 DM

1 matters if called upon to do so.

2 Background and Experience 3 2. I have a B.A. from the University of Missouri, which I obtained in 1982.

4 I have a certificate in paralegal studies from the University of San Diego, which I obtained 5 in 1984.

6 3. I have been employed by Heller Ehrman as a paralegal since 1984. I have 7 been a Senior Litigation Paralegal since 1998. At Heller Ehrman, I have been lead paralegal 8 on numerous large litigation matters.

9 4. As lead paralegal, I have managed all phases of litigation support from 10 commencement of the action through trial. I have supported Heller Ehrman lawyers in 11 motion practice, discovery, trial and post-trial matters. I have had extensive involvement in 12 file management and support. Among other things, I have had responsibility for locating 13 and assembling client documents (in some cases involving hundreds of thousands of pages);

14 reviewing and preparing documents for productions; coding documents and implementing 15 databases for use in document productions and internal analysis; developing filing systems 16 for searching and retrieval of documents by subject matter or for specific purposes (e.g.,

17 depositions or trial); and summarization or distillation of documents for specific purposes 18 (e.g., developing chronologies).

19 5. In addition, I have had significant responsibility supervising other paralegals 20 and support staff in complex cases. In some cases, I have supervised as many as 15 21 paralegals and support staff.

22 6. I have acted as lead paralegal in Heller Ehrman's San Francisco office in on 23 numerous PG&E matters, both before and after PG&E filed its bankruptcy petition on several litigations 24 April 6, 2001. Prior to PG&E's bankruptcy filing, I was lead paralegal (work 25 in which Heller Ehrman represented PG&E: County of Stanislaus, et al. v. PG&E City of Santa 26 commenced in 1993); PG&E v. CPUC,et al. (work commenced in 1994);

al. v. PG&E (work 27 Cruz, et al. v. PG&E (work commenced in 1994); County of Alameda, et in 1996);

Heller 28 commenced in 1994); PG&E v. Destec Power Services, Inc. (work commenced Ehrman -2 White & DECLARATION OF DAVID R. LUSTER IN SUPPORT OF McAuliffe LLP HELLER EHRMAN'S SECOND INTERIM FEE APPLICATION CASE NO.: 01-30923 DM

II 1 Modesto IrrigationDistrictv. PG&E, et al. (work commenced in 1998); Laguna Irrigation 2 District v. PG&E, et al. (work commenced in 2000). Since PG&E filed for bankruptcy, I 3 have been lead paralegal on PG&E v. Lynch et al. (Matter No. 64) (originally filed in 4 November 2000) (the "Federal Filed Rate Case"). I have also provided paralegal services in 5 on Matter No. 65 (Wilson v. PG&E), Matter No. 76 (CPUC Docket 01-03-082), Matter 6 No. 77 (CPUC 011 Proceeding), Matter No. 80 (CPUC Prudence Review), and Matter 7 No. 82 (Bankruptcy - Employment and Fee Applications).

8 File Manalzement 9 7. As a result of my 17 years of experience as a paralegal at Heller Ehrman, I am 10 familiar with how file management in large, complex cases customarily is handled at Heller 11 Ehrman, and also am able to compare the demands of this case with other cases at Heller 12 Ehrman.

13 8. The demands of the PG&E matters are extremely complex and substantial, 14 above and beyond those of a typical case, and require centralized file management that The 15 paralegals (rather than secretaries or other support staff) are best suited to perform.

38 16 PG&E cases currently comprise 22 separate matters being handled by approximately 17 lawyers in five Heller Ehrman offices (San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Seattle, Portland, largest matters 18 and Los Angeles). I am informed that the PG&E engagement is one of the in the 19 being handled by the Firm. Lawyers from all offices need ready access to materials 20 files.

21 9. The quantity of material in the files is large and varied. Heller Ehrman 22 receives numerous documents from different sources, including PG&E, other law firms, both print and 23 federal and state regulatory agencies and the courts, on a daily basis in very technical:

24 electronic form. The PG&E files comprise a great array of materials, some legal research 25 Pleadings, correspondence, various types of work files, regulatory decisions, 26 memoranda, pleadings in related cases, and bankruptcy court materials.

is devoted 27 10. In Heller Ehrman's San Francisco office alone, an entire workroom Heller 28 solely to PG&E files: The workroom contains approximately 20 shelves of pleadings,

-3 Ehrman Whfte & DECLARATION OF DAVID R. LUSTER IN SUPPORT OF McAuliffe LLP HELLER EHRMAN'S SECOND INTERIM FEE APPLICATION CASE NO.: 01-30923 DM

1 motion papers, legal research memoranda, correspondence, and other materials just for files 2 Matter No. 64, the Federal Filed Rate Case. The workroom also contains extensive 3 relating to the present bankruptcy case, the parallel federal filed rate action brought by 4 Southern California Edison Company, and other recent lawsuits bearing on PG&E's Federal 5 Filed Rate Case, including Hendricks v. Dynegy Power Marketing,Inc., et al.; Bustamonte, 6 et al. v. Dynegy PowerMarketing, Inc., et aL; CaliforniaIndependent System Operatorv.

7 Reliant Energy Services, Inc., et al.; and Duke Energy Trading & Marketing L.L. C. v. Davis, 8 et al.

9 11. Similarly, I am informed that in the Washington D.C. office, Heller Ehrman 10 has an entire workroom devoted to PG&E matters which contains 20-25 shelves of materials 11 (separate and apart from the materials each lawyer keeps in his or her office). The materials for 12 relate to multiple, highly technical FERC proceedings being handled by Heller Ehrman are 13 PG&E. Every day, numerous decisions are issued by FERC and numerous documents 14 filed at FERC bearing on PG&E matters. As part of an email service, Heller Ehrman's which need 15 Washington, D.C. office receives approximately 30-50 FERC documents a day, filed.

16 to be reviewed and, if relevant to PG&E matters, circulated, organized and 17 12. The volume of PG&E-related material generated each day requires that Managing the 18 significant time be devoted to file management and document organization.

a substantive 19 PG&E files is challenging, calls for the exercise of discretion, informed by be handled only by a 20 overall knowledge of the PG&E matters and, therefore, practicably can substantive issues 21 paralegal dedicated to PG&E matters who is acquainted with the relevant 22 and has received training in file management.

with 23 13. Unlike most cases, the PG&E matters require a high degree of familiarity 22 matters that Heller 24 substantive issues in order to manage the files properly. Many of the Determining how to 25 Ehrman currently is handling for PG&E involve interrelated issues.

For example, in the 26 classify a document for file management purposes often is difficult.

Commission ("FERC")

27 PG&E cases, a technical report by the Federal Energy Regulatory and need to be filed in more than one set of Heller 28 may pertain to several energy regulatory matters Ehrman -4 White & DECLARATION OF DAVID R. LUSTER IN SUPPORT OF McAuliffe LLP HELLER EHRMAN'S SECOND INTERIM FEE APPLICATION CASE NO.: 01-30923 DM

1 files. For some types of documents - e.g., reports, pleadings in court proceedings, articles, 2 or decisions of the FERC or California Public Utility Commission ("CPUC") - it is also 3 necessary to understand why the document was collected and how it may be used in the 4 future to determine where it should be filed so that it can be retrieved quickly and efficiently on the 5 when needed. On occasion, a paralegal will need to confer with an attorney to decide 6 correct categorization of a document. File management in the PG&E matters also involves 7 regular updating and reorganizing of files to meet the changing needs of the cases.

8 14. File management in the PG&E cases practicably can only be performed by 9 paralegals, not secretaries or other support staff. In the San Francisco office, paralegals 10 receive specific in-house training by lawyers, experienced paralegals, and professional and file 11 training personnel on the litigation process, organization of litigation matters, below) 12 management, including the use of computer software (e.g., "LegalKey, "described that 13 and databases to control documents in complex cases. It is my understanding 14 secretaries and other support staff do not ordinarily receive that training.

15 15. There are additional logistical reasons why secretaries could not practicably is to assign three 16 perform file management in the PG&E cases. Heller Ehrman's practice to devote only a 17 attorneys to each secretary. A secretary therefore could be expected workrooms are in a 18 fraction of his time to PG&E matters. In addition, the PG&E file it very difficult for 19 different location from individual secretarial stations, which would make above, those 20 secretaries to perform tasks in the workroom. Furthermore, as explained substantive issues to 21 managing the PG&E files need an understanding of the underlying but it is difficult for 22 organize the files. Dedicated paralegals can develop that knowledge, Heller Ehrman do not have 23 secretaries to do so. In my experience, in general, secretaries at documents in large litigation 24 primary responsibility for managing files and organizing 25 matters staffed by multiple lawyers.

be 26 16. To illustrate the types of tasks I regularly perform and why it would the 27 infeasible for a secretary to handle file management of the PG&E cases: During working on PG&E Heller 28 Application Period, I received large numbers of requests from lawyers

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1 matters, both in Heller Ehrman's San Francisco office and other offices, for documents and 2 other materials. For example, in the Federal Filed Rate Case, lawyers frequently ask for 3 copies of pleadings, motion papers, correspondence and legal research memoranda. I, and 4 other paralegals under my supervision, often must respond to those requests on short order.

5 I am also often asked to provide copies of court cases, decisions of agencies (such as FERC 6 and the CPUC, some of which need to be obtained from Westlaw or LEXIS), reports of 7 governmental bodies, articles, sections of treatises, or materials relating to a particular 8 subject. Performing these tasks in timely fashion would be extremely difficult for a 9 secretary with responsibilities to other lawyers on other matters. In addition, all files are 10 coded, indexed, and tracked at a file level using "LegalKey," a computer program that of 11 enables paralegals firmwide to search via database for documents in the files. Use not 12 "LegalKey" requires specialized training, which is provided to paralegals, but generally 13 to other staff.

14 17. To the degree a filing assignment is straightforward, as it is when pleadings to PG&E.

15 must be logged, it is given to nonbillable floor support personnel and not billed be handled by 16 However, the bulk of the file management in the PG&E cases cannot feasibly 17 nonbillable floor support personnel or secretaries.

18 Reviewing and Routing Articles Related to PG&E 19 18. Every day, newspapers and other publications carry articles about PG&E, the of 20 California energy crisis, and other issues that affect Heller Ehrman's representation daily 21 PG&E. Heller Ehrman's lawyers rely on these articles to keep current on 22 developments in the energy industry that directly affect PG&E.

23 19. To support Heller Ehrman's lawyers, articles must be located, collected and by an 24 routed on a daily basis. This is done primarily by reviewing articles collected by executing Internet 25 electronic news gathering service (the Daily Bankruptcy News) and and California energy 26 searches of major online publications that regularly report on PG&E The Los Angeles 27 market issues (e.g., The San Francisco Chronicle, The New York Times, An essential part of that task is Heller 28 Times, and The Daily Recorder legal periodical).

Ehrman -6 White & DECLARATION OF DAVID R. LUSTER IN SUPPORT OF McAuliffe LLP HELLER EHRMAN'S SECOND INTERIM FEE APPLICATION CASE NO.: 01-30923 DM

1 determining which articles from a large number of articles appearing daily are relevant to 2 the PG&E cases handled by Heller Ehrman. That task requires familiarity with the 3 substance of the PG&E cases and the exercise of discretion. Sometimes, it is important to 4 circulate several similar (and, on first impression, duplicative) articles which present slightly 5 different angles on issues of importance in the PG&E cases. Knowledge of the issues in the 6 PG&E matters is necessary to perform that task. Having paralegals perform that task 7 relieves attorneys of the need either to review all press reports that are potentially relevant to 8 the matters on which Heller Ehrman is working or risk overlooking a relevant and 9 potentially important article.

10 20. The only alternatives to having these tasks performed by paralegals would be 11 to have them performed either by librarians or by attorneys. Librarians and other 12 nonparalegal staff at Heller Ehrman are not equipped to review and select articles for 13 circulation to Heller Ehrman's lawyers. The library staff in the Firm's offices is limited in 14 number. Heller Ehrman librarians must serve approximately 180 lawyers in the San 15 Francisco office alone, and generally do not develop expertise in a particular case. As a 16 practical matter, Heller Ehrman's librarians cannot be expected to develop the case-specific 17 expertise necessary to perform the article review and selection process that a dedicated 18 paralegal can.

19 21. Further, I am further informed that it is Heller Ehrman's practice to bill for than 20 Heller Ehrman's librarians' time and that Heller Ehrman's librarians bill at rates higher 21 most paralegals. Thus, there would be no savings in having librarians, rather than 22 paralegals, perform this task; more likely than not, using librarians would be more 23 expensive. It would be even more uneconomical and inefficient to have each of Heller 24 Ehrman's lawyers search for articles on a daily basis.

25 26 27 Heller 28 Ehrman -7 White & DECLARATION OF DAVID R. LUSTER IN SUPPORT OF McAuliffe LLP HELLER EHRMAN'S SECOND INTERIM FEE APPLICATION CASE NO.: 01-30923 DM

1 I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct, and that this 2 declaration was executed this 14th day of January 2002, at San Francisco, California.

3 4

David R. Luster 5

6 7

8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 Heller 28 Ehrman -8 White & DECLARATION OF DAVID R. LUSTER IN SUPPORT OF McAuliffe LLP HELLER EHRMAN'S SECOND INTERIM FEE APPLICATION CASE NO.: 01-30923 DM