StubHub Wasted $190k in One Case

The table below uses actual figures for four inputs and estimates for three to arrive at StubHub’s minimum total spend of over $189,000 in the case it lost at arbitration after refusing settlement at $5,655. 

Note that StubHub had a litigation strategy of disputing and briefing everything (governing law, discovery requests, subpoenas to call center agents), which prompted nine different written orders from the arbitrator.  The arbitrator billed out for 79 hours on this case.  The arbitrator’s award of attorney fees to the victim’s attorney was based on a calculation of a reasonable hourly rate of $500 in the hearing locale multiplied by a reasonable number of hours.  The arbitrator significantly reduced this latter number from the actual number of hours expended by the victim’s attorney due to an issue known as fee segregation.  StubHub had to pay its own army of attorneys and support staff from Holland & Knight for all work performed without any reduction from the arbitrator, and their attorneys' fees are much steeper than a $500 hourly rate.  

My typical StubHub client's dispute has less than $1,500 at issue.  StubHub could have properly compensated over 126 different victims for the same $189,000 it wasted on this one case.