Civil Litigation,
9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Feb. 6, 2020
Fee award trimmed 90% needs greater explanation, split panel rules.
Pegging a lawyer’s compensation precisely to a plaintiff’s damage recovery would “create perverse incentives” in civil rights litigation, according to the ruling.
A trial court must revisit its decision to restrict an attorney's fee award to just 10% of sought compensation, a 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel ruled Wednesday while admitting its jurisprudence around fee awards has been described as "inscrutable."
In curtailing the award, U.S. District Judge James C. Mahan reasoned "the vast majority of hours expended" in a Nevada civil rights action were "unreasonable" and figured the ...
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Civil Procedure
Vargas v. Howell
A significant reduction in attorney's fees requires a thorough explanation; thus, trial court did not adequately justify the dramatic cut that it imposed.