Homepage > Entertainment

Ex-Lawyer Balks At Report About Birkhead Bill

Opri's Bill For Birkhead To Be More Than $620,000, TMZ Says

POSTED: 9:48 am EDT April 2, 2007
UPDATED: 3:58 pm EDT April 2, 2007

AP Image
Larry Birkhead, Debra Opri
The actual expenses Larry Birkhead's incurred to get a DNA sample to prove he's the father of the late Anna Nicole Smith's baby are in question.

According to information obtained by TMZ.com, Birkhead's former attorney, Debra Opri, has delivered him a bill for $620,492.84.

But now Opri has responded with a statement: "One can only imagine from whom and for what purposes these stories were started. I cannot comment on unauthenticated documents which were disseminated to the media under suspicious circumstances, and which are covered by the attorney-client privilege.

Opri insisted in the statement, appearing on TMZ, that her charges to Birkhead were "reasonable, necessary, and appropriate, given the complexity and magnitude of this very high profile case that was litigated in two different states and a foreign country."

Birkhead purportedly fired Opri two weeks ago.

According to a report posted on TMZ Sunday, Opri billed Birkhead at $475 an hour. The site said that some of the charges included on a 112-page bill included $1,500 for Opri's personal publicist and dinners where Birkhead wasn't present. One restaurant bill was nearly $2,500 for an attorney meeting, TMZ said.

TMZ also said that Opri even billed Birkhead $27.75 for laundry service for her husband.

Other charges, according to TMZ, included 10 hours March 1 for "preparation for and attendance re services and var. meetings re same" for Smith's funeral -- and another 10-hour charge with the exact same language for March 2, the day of the funeral.

TMZ said that Birkhead asked Opri not to attend the funeral, but she did anyway.

Opri's publicist told TMZ that their client "always gets paid" because "that's what she does for a living."

In addition, TMZ received a statement from Opri's lawyer, David Owen, who said, "She is entitled to be paid and he stiffed her and her bills are fair and reasonable."

Links We Like

The first step in reducing debt is recognizing how much you have. Let us help you with the rest and get out from under your debt in 12 months. More

Does your phone have bad reception or drop calls in your house? Then you need a Magic Jack. More

A degree from ITT Technical Institute can help you achieve your goals and get you started on the path towards a rewarding career. More

Featured On 5

Today's Hot Deals