D. New Mexico cuts commercial fee award 9.6%, including for clerical work

What happened

Century Bank, represented by Modrall Sperling, sought $23,678.28 in fees and costs under a contract fee clause. The court awarded $21,415.30, a reduction of $2,262.98 or 9.6%. It excluded 5.3 hours billed for receiving and sending email and postage, reviewing emails billed by the drafting attorney, submitting orders to the court, and compiling service materials. It also reduced the hourly rate charged for Ms. Gutierrez and the rate charged for the firm's paralegals.

What the court said

However, Century Bank's invoices include 5.3 hours spent on the following activities: (1) receiving and sending email and postage, (2) reviewing emails billed by the drafting attorney, (3) submitting orders to the Court, and (4) compiling service materials.

The court also reduced the award for: hourly rate reduced, hourly rate reduced.

Why it matters

The ruling shows courts separate clerical tasks from legal work when reviewing time records, and will cut entries that describe administrative activity. It also shows that rate reductions can follow from thin information about a timekeeper's background, even when the hours themselves are not disputed.

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. New Mexico approves and attorney fee motions in New Mexico 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.