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B-210604 1 (1983-08-24)

handle is hein.gao/gaobadlgz0001 and id is 1 raw text is: THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL ECISION OFP TTHE UNITEO STATES WASHINGTON. 0.C. 2054 FILE: B-210604 DATE: August 24, 1983 MATTER oF:Reid T. Stone DIGEST: Employee retained attorney to facilitate transfer of marketable title when seller's death prior to closing resulted in reversion of property being purchased to a trust and subjected it to claims for death-related taxes and construction liens. Since services were necessary to the transfer of title and customarily paid for by the purchaser within the meaning of Matter of Lay, 56 Comp. Gen. 561 (1977), fees may be reimbursed insofar as the number of hours billed is reasonable for the particular complications involved and the hourly rate charged is within the customary range of charges for such services. The issue presented in this case is whether reimburse- ment of attorney fees incident to the purchase of a resi- dence is limited by what is customary in the normal trans- action, or whether fees incurred to facilitate the transfer of marketable title may be reimbursed where the purchase transaction is complicated by the seller's death prior to closing. Mr. Reid T. Stone, an employee of the Geological Sur- vey, United States Department of the Interior, was trans- ferred from Menlo Park to Los Angeles, California, by a travel authorization dated September 20, 1981. In December 1981, the employee made an offer to purchase a unit in a residential building which was under construction. As no real estate agents were involved, he obtained the services of an attorney to draft a purchase offer and render related services. He has been reimbursed $285 for these particular legal fees. Before the transaction was completed, however, one of the sellers died and the employee incurred additional attorney fees for research, negotiations and drafting of additional documents. The additional legal work was neces- sitated by title complications that resulted from the fact that the property, which reverted to a trust, became subject to claims for estate and inheritance taxes. Also complications arose as a result of construction and materials liens. The bill submitted by the attorney is for 23.70 hours of work at $150 per hour..

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