D. Arizona cuts wage and hour fee award 1.9% over clerical work

What happened

Parker Law Firm P.L.C., counsel for the fee applicant in a Fair Labor Standards Act wage and hour case, requested $9,523 in fees for 21.4 hours. Judge Sharad H. Desai awarded $9,345 for 21.0 hours, a reduction of $178, or 1.9%. The court subtracted 0.4 hours because it found that time to be clerical or administrative in nature rather than legal work. The figures do not include costs.

What the court said

These 0.4 hours will be subtracted as clerical or administrative in nature.

Why it matters

The ruling shows that courts review time entries line by line and will subtract even small amounts of time described as clerical or administrative, even when the overall reduction is modest. It illustrates that fee awards track the nature of the tasks recorded, not just the total hours claimed.

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.