Opinion ID: 731308
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Attorneys' Fees; Extent of Damages

Text: 49 Both parties to this appeal sought attorneys' fees in the district court pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 1132, and both saw their claims rejected by that court. On appeal, however, only the Plan seeks review of this aspect of the district court ruling. As a general rule, the decision to award attorneys' fees is left to the sound discretion of the trial court and will be reversed only for an abuse of discretion. 27 We find no abuse of discretion by the district court here, even though on appeal we have altered the outcome of the case rather dramatically. 50 The five factors to be considered in determining whether to award attorneys' fees pursuant to section 1132(g)(1) may now have a slightly difference valence, 28 yet they still augur for sustaining the district court's refusal to award attorneys' fees to the Plan. Most significantly, for purposes of this case we find essentially no evidence of culpability or bad faith on Whitehurst's part, 29 and conclude that, given the district court's ruling in Whitehurst's favor, the relative merits of the parties' positions were not overwhelmingly stacked on the Plan's side. It follows that the district court's denial of the Plan's request for attorneys' fees was neither arbitrary nor capricious, and is therefore affirmed.
51 As the final point of our analysis, we observe that on appeal the Plan also challenged the district court's additional findings--apparently articulated by that court just in case we were to determine that the Pro Rata division of Whitehurst's recovery would be appropriate--regarding the total amount of damages suffered by Whitehurst and the percentage of those damages attributable to medical expenses. As we reverse the district court's judgment in favor of Whitehurst and render judgment in favor of the Plan, recognizing its right to full, dollar-for-dollar reimbursement off the top of Whitehurst's recoveries from his tortfeasor and the tortfeasor's insurer, we need not and therefore do not reach the question whether the district court erred in making additional findings on the extent of Whitehurst's total damages. The matter is now moot. III