Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 50, December 13, 2024
Section 89-1-7 - Voucher processing; reduction; rejection; resolution of disputes7.1. The agency will review a voucher to determine if the time and expense claims are reasonable, necessary, and valid based upon the information provided on the information page, the itemized statement of legal services, and the itemized statement of expenses. The agency may review the vouchers of counsel for other parties in the matter in making this determination and may make additional inquiries as deemed to be necessary to this determination. The agency may review other vouchers of the panel attorney which include dates of service set forth in the voucher being reviewed. The agency may also contact the panel attorney submitting the voucher with questions regarding the voucher being reviewed.7.2. Within 30 days after the receipt of a voucher, the agency may reject the voucher for the following reasons: 7.2.1. The voucher is not submitted electronically to the agency in the OVS system;7.2.2. The voucher is submitted more than 90 days after the last entry for an actual and necessary legal service on behalf of the eligible client and no order of the presiding court showing good cause for the late submission is uploaded with the voucher;7.2.3. The documents comprising the voucher have not been completed fully and accurately;7.2.4. The amount set forth in the voucher exceeds any statutory cap on the fees or expenses either in the voucher itself or when added to the amount of compensation paid or expenses reimbursed in previously submitted vouchers in the same matter and no order of the presiding court showing good cause for exceeding the limits is uploaded with the voucher;7.2.5. The voucher is for services in a matter that is not an eligible proceeding;7.2.6. The voucher is for services provided to a person who is not an eligible client;7.2.7. The statement of legal services contains time entries that suggest value billing, block billing, pattern billing, or other billing that does not reflect actual time;7.2.8. The statement of legal services contains explanations or descriptions of the legal services from which the agency cannot determine the nature and extent of the legal services;7.2.9. Hours on certain dates of service cause the attorney to exceed 18 billable hours on a day and an explanation for exceeding this number of hours is not provided with the submission;7.2.10. In-court hours are listed for paralegal services without an accompanying order permitting compensation for paralegal's work in-court;7.2.11. In-court compensation for paralegal services exceed the maximum amount;7.2.12. As a whole, the compensation requested does not represent reasonable, necessary, or valid services;7.2.13. The voucher is a duplicate of a previously submitted voucher; or7.2.14. The voucher in some manner fails to comply with the agency's guidelines, this legislative rule, the governing statute, or the rules of the Office of the Auditor for the State of West Virginia.7.3. If a voucher is rejected, the panel attorney will be notified by email of the reasons for the rejection and will have a period of 15 days within which to correct the deficiencies in the submission, if possible, and submit the corrections to the agency with an explanation. A certification from the court regarding the reasonableness or necessity of services will only be obtained if demanded by the agency in its notification to the panel attorney. If not resolved by communication between the panel attorney and the agency, the resolution of disputes regarding the rejection of a voucher is governed by the provisions of W. Va. Code § 29-21-13a(d)(2).7.4. Within 30 days after the receipt of a voucher, the agency may revise a voucher by reducing the amount of compensation to be approved for payment for the following reasons: 7.4.1. Striking the dates of service on the voucher that precede the last date of service of a preceding voucher in the same matter;7.4.2. Reducing the number of hours on a date of service set forth in the voucher so that the panel attorney's accumulated hours on that date do not exceed eighteen hours unless the panel attorney has submitted an explanation for the excess hours;7.4.3. Striking the itemized services for which the explanation or description is not discernible or decipherable;7.4.4. Reducing the number of hours for itemized legal services that are unnecessary to the completion of the identified task based on the circumstances of the case;7.4.5. Striking entries which appear to be duplicated in the voucher and that have no accompanying explanation or description explaining the apparent duplication;7.4.6. Striking the itemized services which constitute administrative tasks and not the delivery of legal services;7.4.7. Reducing compensation for investigative services to the rate for paralegal services;7.4.8. Striking itemized services that duplicate services itemized on a voucher in the same case or in another case; or7.4.9. Striking items which are inconsistent with this legislative rule, the agency's guidelines, the governing statute, or the rules of the Office of the Auditor for the State of West Virginia.7.5. If a voucher is revised, the attorney will be notified by email of the reasons for the reduction and will be told what records, if any, must be produced in order for the agency to approve the compensation in the amount requested by the panel attorney. The panel attorney will have 15 days within which to submit additional records or other documentation supporting the payment of compensation for the struck or reduced items. If the agency and the panel attorney cannot agree on the compensability or lack of compensability of an item, the agency will process for payment the uncontested amount of the request for compensation and will move the presiding court to enter its order resolving the dispute between the agency and the panel attorney.