S.D. Florida cuts civil rights fee award 66.9%, including for block billing

What happened

Liberty Counsel, counsel for the plaintiffs, requested $2,225,018 in fees under 42 U.S.C. § 1988 for 2,274.8 hours. The court awarded $736,227.53, a reduction of $1,488,790.47 or 66.9%, excluding costs. It accepted 169.5 hours for fees on fees, reduced the hourly rates for pre-February 2020 time, and applied a 25% across-the-board cut to the remaining hours. That cut rested on block billing, vague entries, clerical work billed as legal work, and excessive hours.

What the court said

For all these reasons, Plaintiffs have not justified all of the time that was blocked billed. A fee reduction for block billing is therefore appropriate.

because Plaintiffs have not offered evidence to explain why all of this work was necessary to their representation, these entries likewise justify a reduction in compensable hours.

a reduction of hours based on time spent on clerical tasks, rather than a reduction based on entries that include clerical tasks, is appropriate.

The court also reduced the award for: fees on fees, excessive hours, hourly rate reduced.

Why it matters

The ruling shows that a single across-the-board percentage cut can rest on several time record problems at once, so the block billing finding did not by itself account for the full reduction. Courts may also reduce rates and hours separately before applying such a cut.

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 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.