D. Arizona cuts fee award 9.3%, including for clerical work

What happened

The defendants sought $31,775.25 in sanctions fees for 94.25 hours. Judge Liburdi awarded $28,822.75, a reduction of $2,952.50 or 9.3%. The court deducted 1.6 hours ($542.50) and 6.1 hours ($2,135) for work on unrelated claims, 0.6 hours ($175) for clerical work billed as legal work, and 0.2 hours ($100) for other entries. The figures do not include costs.

What the court said

Attorneys, however, cannot recover fees "for the performance of administrative tasks which could and should be performed by secretarial or paralegal staff."

The court also reduced the award for: unrelated claims, unrelated claims, other.

Why it matters

The ruling shows that a fee applicant must separate time spent on successful claims from time on unrelated claims, and that administrative tasks are not compensable as attorney time even when the total reduction is modest.

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 D. Arizona approves and attorney fee motions in Arizona 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.