E.D. Missouri cuts employment fee award 1%, including for clerical work

What happened

The Kasper Law Firm, LLC sought $1,270,920 in attorney fees under 42 U.S.C. § 1988 for 2,599 hours in the employment case. Judge Stephen R. Clark awarded $1,258,380, a reduction of $12,540 or 1%. The court reduced the request for entries billing clerical work as legal work, entries that were vague or lacked sufficient description, block-billed entries, and entries for tasks unnecessary to or unsubstantiated as necessary to the case. The figures do not include costs.

What the court said

1. Entries for clerical work,

2. Entries that are vague or contain insufficient description,

3. Block-billed entries, and

The court also reduced the award for: other.

Why it matters

The ruling shows that a fee award can be trimmed even when the overall reduction is small, and that courts examine individual time entries for clerical tasks, vague descriptions, block billing and work not shown to be necessary to the case.

How to keep this out of your fee petition

• Leave purely clerical work off the fee petition.
• Describe paralegal tasks so the substantive work is clear.
• Split mixed entries into their substantive and clerical parts.

Cite this ruling

See hourly rates the E.D. Missouri approves and attorney fee motions in Missouri federal courts.

Figures and quotes are taken from the opinion and checked against its text. Spot an error? Email team@legaltime.ai with the case name and we will correct it. Summaries of public court opinions. Not legal advice.