Bankr. D. New Mexico cuts bankruptcy fee award 98.6%, including for clerical work

What happened

New Mexico Financial and Family Law, P.C., counsel for the debtors, requested $5,165 in fees. The court awarded $74, a reduction of $5,091 or 98.6%. It cut $608 billed for clerical work, $1,080 for work it found corrective or duplicative, $445 for fee applications, $168 for attending a preliminary hearing, $833 for proof of claim review, and $1,957 for sending and reviewing emails. The figures do not include costs.

What the court said

$608 in fees billed for clerical work;

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

Why it matters

The ruling shows that time records must separate clerical tasks from legal work and must justify the hours spent on routine items. When entries mix categories or reflect work the court sees as duplicative or excessive, the court can reduce the award line by line, and the reductions can be substantial.

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

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.