S.D. Florida cuts disability access fee award 13.4%, including for clerical work

What happened

The fee applicant in an Americans with Disabilities Act case sought $4,311.50 for 11.7 hours. The court awarded $3,735 for 9.0 hours, a reduction of $576.50, or 13.4%. It applied a 10% cut across total hours because some entries were for clerical and administrative work, such as filing the complaint, civil cover sheet, and proposed summonses, and creating a file folder. It applied a further 10% cut because several tasks appeared to take longer than reasonable, including reviewing two orders.

What the court said

The Court has carefully reviewed Mr. Goldstein’s time entries and finds that some of the billing entries are for clerical and administrative work, such as billing 0.2 hours for filing the complaint, civil cover, and proposed summonses, and creating a file folder using the assigned case number.

The court also reduced the award for: excessive hours.

Why it matters

The ruling shows courts will separate clerical tasks from legal work when reviewing time entries, even in small fee requests, and will trim hours for tasks that appear to take longer than necessary. It also shows that reductions can be applied as percentages across total hours rather than by striking specific entries.

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.