N.D. Texas cuts intellectual property fee award 3.3%, including for block billing

What happened

Baker Botts, counsel for Computer Sciences Corporation, requested $15,811,695.76 in fees for 20,760 hours. Judge Brantley Starr awarded $15,291,490.97, a reduction of $520,204.79 or 3.3%. The court reduced each firm's block billed hours, a 1.50% cut in the lodestar. It also reduced 95.2 hours billed by Baker Botts attorneys for duplicative staffing, a 0.45% cut, and cut the lodestar by 1.34% for 375 hours spent responding to meritorious motions by Tata Consultancy Services.

What the court said

Accordingly, the Court reduces each firm’s block billed hours by 30%, totaling a 1.50% reduction in the lodestar.

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

Why it matters

The ruling shows that block billing can draw a percentage cut even in a large fee request, and that courts will separately trim hours for duplicative staffing and work on unsuccessful motions. It also shows reductions can be modest when the overall request is largely supported.

How to keep this out of your fee petition

• Record one task per entry, each with its own time.
• Write the entry when the work happens, not at the end of the week.
• If a task really is one unit of work, say what it was and what it produced.

Cite this ruling

See hourly rates the N.D. Texas approves and attorney fee motions in Texas 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.