E.D. New York cuts wage and hour fee award 49.1%, including for clerical work

What happened

The plaintiff in an FLSA wage and hour case requested $37,593.80 in fees for 123.12 hours. The court reduced one attorney's hourly rate and recommended another biller's rate be reduced across the board. It also recommended a 25% across-the-board cut in total hours for non-legal work in the time logs and unsuccessful motion practice, and separately identified clerical tasks billed as legal work. The court awarded $19,140.80, a reduction of $18,453.00 or 49.1%.

What the court said

Second, counsel has billed time for clerical tasks.

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

Why it matters

The ruling shows that courts examine time entries for tasks that are clerical rather than legal, and that billing such work can support a percentage cut in hours. It also shows that rate reductions and across-the-board cuts can combine with recordkeeping problems to substantially lower a fee award.

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