E.D. Kentucky cuts civil rights fee award 25.2%, including for block billing

What happened

The fee applicant sought $9,842.70 for 46.87 hours under 42 U.S.C. § 1988 in Wynn v. City of Covington et al. Judge David L. Bunning awarded $7,364.70 for 35.07 hours, a reduction of $2,478.00. The court allowed compensation for only 1.4 hours of work on the fee motion, deducting 9.95 hours from the 11.35 hours claimed. It also applied a 5% across-the-board reduction to the total hours for block billing and a further 5% across-the-board reduction for clerical tasks billed as legal work.

What the court said

a 5% across-the-board reduction to the total number of hours is a reasonable reduction to account for the block billing with clerical tasks

a 5% across-the-board reduction to the total number of hours is a reasonable reduction to account for the block billing with clerical tasks

The court also reduced the award for: fees on fees.

Why it matters

The ruling shows that courts will scrutinize entries for fees on fees and will apply across-the-board percentage cuts when time records combine tasks or include clerical work. It illustrates that recordkeeping problems can reduce an award even when the overall hours claimed are modest.

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

attorney fee motions in Kentucky federal courts.

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