S.D. Florida cuts civil rights fee award 10% over clerical work

What happened

The fee applicant in Hava v. City of Hollywood et al sought $22,260 in attorney fees under 42 U.S.C. § 1988. Judge Alicia O. Valle awarded $20,034, a reduction of $2,226, or 10% of the total fee. The court found billing inefficiencies in the records, specifically that several time entries reflected time spent on clerical work billed as legal work. The 10% reduction was applied to the total fee. The figures do not include costs.

What the court said

the billing records reflect certain billing inefficiencies that require downward adjustment. More specifically, several of the time entries reflect time spent on clerical work

Why it matters

The ruling shows that courts review time entries for the nature of the tasks recorded, not just the hours claimed. When entries describe clerical tasks billed as legal work, a court may apply a percentage cut to the whole fee rather than exclude individual entries, making accurate task descriptions in time records important on a fee petition.

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 S.D. Florida approves and attorney fee motions in Florida 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.