By Greg Hazley
Sitrick and Company has filed papers in Los Angeles County Superior Court confirming $68,000 is owed to the firm by actor Wesley Snipes, who is in jail on a three-year sentence for tax evasion.
An April 13 filing by Sitrick shows that the PR firm and Snipes’ representatives went through an arbitration panel which earlier this year handed down a final decision after the actor and PR firm agreed to a $60,000 retainer plus fees as he faced trail on the tax charges in Florida in late 2007 and early 2008.
Sitrick was hired by Snipes’ attorney, Daniel Meachum.
The filing shows Snipes made two payments to Sitrick in January 2008 – of $54,000 and $46,000 – but the panel awarded Sitrick an additional $68,000 based on work done in for the January 2008 trial. That figure breaks down to more than $37K in PR fees and expenses, $19K in attorneys’ fees and $11K in interest.
Sitrick’s contract, signed by Michael Sitrick, set an hourly rate from $165 to $695. The firm’s contract indicates it customarily requests a “success fee” if its PR services result in “significant benefits” to a client.
Snipes is serving a maximum three-year sentence in minimum security federal prison in Pennsylvania after being convicted on Feb. 1, 2008 of three misdemeanor counts of failing to file tax returns.
|