E.D. Pennsylvania cuts civil rights fee award 6.3%, including for clerical work

What happened

Zimolong, LLC sought $228,081 in fees under 42 U.S.C. § 1988 for 395.4 hours. The court awarded $213,654, a $14,427 reduction. It slightly lowered the hourly rates for Mr. Zimolong and Mr. Fitzpatrick. It cut 6.7 hours billed as legal work for clerical tasks, 2.4 hours for other entries, and 7.2 hours for duplicative staffing. The figures do not include costs.

What the court said

Accordingly, the Court reduces Mr. Zimolong's time by 2.4 hours and Mr. Fitzpatrick's time by 4.3 hours for the entries reflected in the table below

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

Why it matters

The ruling shows that courts will reduce rates and remove hours for clerical tasks, duplicative staffing, and other entries even when the overall cut is modest. It confirms that time records must separate legal work from clerical work and avoid duplicate billing.

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. Pennsylvania approves and attorney fee motions in Pennsylvania 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.