Opinion ID: 4020402
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Post-Appeal Activities

Text: Defendants claim that SEIU Local 1 attorneys spent an unreasonable amount of time, 190 hours, on post-appeal activities, including obtaining unopposed relief. First, Defendants fault the SEIU Local 1 Plaintiffs for filing a 35-page motion, eight additional exhibits, a proposed order, and a separate motion seeking expedited consideration of the permanent injunction since they had already prevailed. The drafting was delegated to Laura Trice of Altshuler Berzon, who had no SEIU Local 1 experience. Additionally, attorneys charged 50 hours for assorted activities, including drafting and editing a “strategy memo” and reviewing the NEOCH litigation. Plaintiffs billed 100 hours (seven attorneys) in relation to the permanent injunction filings. The district court expressly rejected Defendants’ challenge to the amount of time (including the use of a new attorney) spent on the permanent injunction motion: “The Court is Nos. 14-4083/ 4084/ Northeast Ohio Coalition, et al. v. Husted, et al. Page 31 4132/ 4133/ 15-3295/ 3296/ 3380/ 3381 satisfied that Plaintiffs’ work in seeking a permanent injunction, and providing the Court with the factual and legal basis to enter its Order, was of the sort that a reasonable attorney would have believed to be reasonably expended in pursuit of success” when the work was performed. Sept. 29, 2014 Op., at 15 (internal quotation marks, edits and citation omitted). Again, the district court provided a “concise but clear explanation” that is entitled to substantial deference by this court. As Plaintiffs argued in the district court, no competent counsel would ask the district court to rubber stamp a conversion of a preliminary injunction into a permanent injunction without providing legal and factual support. Defendants also assert that the only 2013 work within the scope of the SEIU Local 1 fee motion was obtaining a correct-place/wrong-precinct permanent injunction, but that counsel for the SEIU Local 1 Plaintiffs billed 30 hours for the 2013 mediation, with entries from seven attorneys, despite the fact that the mediation focused on other issues. The district court reviewed the time records and found that the fees related to mediation (as to the NEOCH Plaintiffs) were proper because in the months prior to June 30, 2013, the parties engaged in settlement discussions without reaching an agreement, and the NEOCH Plaintiffs decided to move for an extension of the Decree as the expiration date approached. Sept. 29, 2014 Op., at 10-11. As to the SEIU Local 1 Plaintiffs, Defendants have not provided any evidence to support their claim that the time included issues other than those upon which Plaintiffs prevailed. In the context of the overwhelming success Plaintiffs achieved, the district court did not abuse its discretion for failing to trim hours devoted to a process that moved the entire litigation along.