D. Arizona cuts wage and hour fee award 10.9% over clerical work | LegalTime AI

D. Arizona cuts wage and hour fee award 10.9% over clerical work

Romero v. C.T.C. Cleaning Services LLC et al, No. 2:25-cv-00281. District Court, D. Arizona, Judge Steven P. Logan. Decided . Read the opinion

Requested
$7,743
Awarded
$6,897.50
Cut
10.9%$845.50

Wage and hour · Fair Labor Standards Act

What happened

The fee applicant in an FLSA wage and hour case requested $7,743 in attorney fees for 17.4 hours. The court awarded $6,897.50, a reduction of $845.50, or 10.9%. The court struck 1.9 hours of clerical and administrative tasks billed as legal work, leaving 15.5 hours. The figures do not include costs.

What the court said

Clerical work billed as legal work · $845.50
the Court will strike a total of 1.9 hours of clerical and administrative tasks at an hourly rate of $445, for a total reduction of $845.50 from the fee award

Why it matters

The ruling shows that courts will separate clerical and administrative tasks from legal work on a fee petition and reduce the award for time spent on tasks that do not require an attorney's skill.

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

Romero v. C.T.C. Cleaning Services LLC, No. 2:25-cv-00281 (D. Ariz. Aug. 21, 2025)

See hourly rates the D. Arizona approves and attorney fee motions in Arizona 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.

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