Opinion ID: 73450
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Drafting the Briefs

Text: The defendants contend that the district court abused its discretion by failing to exclude any of the hours that the plaintiffs’ five attorneys billed, exclusive of research, for drafting and reviewing the three substantive briefs filed before the district court. Those three briefs, which totaled less than 100 pages of written work product, included a brief in support of the plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary injunction, a reply brief in support of their motion for preliminary injunction, and a brief opposing the defendants’ motion to dismiss the complaint. The defendants argue that a review of the plaintiffs’ attorneys’ billing records does not indicate any sort of division of labor among the attorneys for their work in drafting the briefs. Instead, the records indicate substantial duplication of effort. While the defendants concede that the hours of McClain, Weber, and Thorpe were legitimate, they argue that the district court abused its discretion by not excluding as redundant the hours of Hansen and Beeson. We agree. 22 The “fee applicant bears the burden of establishing entitlement and documenting the appropriate hours.” Norman, 836 F.2d at 1303. Redundant hours must be excluded from the reasonable hours claimed by the fee applicant. See Hensley, 461 U.S. at 434, 103 S. Ct. at 1939-40. Such “hours generally occur where more than one attorney represents a client.” Norman, 836 F.2d at 1301-02. However, [t]here is nothing inherently unreasonable about a client having multiple attorneys. Id. at 1302. For that reason, a reduction for redundant hours is warranted only if the attorneys are unreasonably doing the same work. An award for time spent by two or more attorneys is proper as long as it reflects the distinct contribution of each lawyer to the case and the customary practice of multiple-lawyer litigation. Johnson v. University College of Univ. of Ala. in Birmingham, 706 F.2d 1205, 1208 (11th Cir. 1983). Thus, a fee applicant is entitled to recover for the hours of multiple attorneys if he satisfies his burden of showing that the time spent by those attorneys reflects the distinct contribution of each lawyer to the case and is the customary practice of multiplelawyer litigation. But the fee applicant has the burden of showing that, and where there is an objection raising the point, it is not a make-believe burden. 23 In this case, the billing records indicate that the plaintiffs threw five attorneys at the task of drafting the three briefs. The three Atlanta attorneys billed a total of 119.99 hours on drafting the briefs: McClain 55.37 hours, Weber 42.00 hours, and Thorpe 22.62 hours, all of which the defendants concede were legitimate. In addition to those hours, however, the plaintiffs seek to recover for Hansen's 29.50 hours and Beeson's 82.12 hours, a total of 111.62 more hours. We conclude that the plaintiffs have not met their burden of showing that the hours billed by Hansen and Beeson reflected a distinct contribution on the part of those attorneys to the task of drafting the briefs.11 Missing from the billing records of all of the plaintiffs' attorneys is any indication of the distinct contribution each attorney made to the task of drafting the briefs. Nor do any of the attorneys' affidavits clarify the billing records by describing what each attorney contributed. The closest the affidavits come in this regard is the conclusory statement in Weber's affidavit that the hours he billed represent a specific division of labor with co-counsel. That statement gives no clue as to what that division of labor might have been. After the 11 We do not reach the issue of whether assigning five lawyers to drafting briefs reflects the customary practice in cases of this type. 24 plaintiffs were apprised in the district court of the defendants’ specific objections to Hansen’s and Beeson's hours, they did not take the opportunity to supplement the record--either through additional affidavits or by requesting an evidentiary hearing--to show the distinct contribution, if any, that those two lawyers made to the task of drafting the briefs. Accordingly, we conclude that the plaintiffs did not carry their burden of showing they were entitled to recover for the hours of each of the attorneys employed on the task of drafting the briefs, and therefore that the district court abused its discretion by failing to exclude the hours Hansen and Beeson billed for drafting the briefs: 29.50 for Hansen and 82.12 for Beeson. c. Preparing for and Attending the Status Conference The defendants next contend that the district court abused its discretion by failing to exclude any of the 51 hours billed by four of the plaintiffs’ attorneys for preparation for, travel to, and attendance at a status conference before the district court in Atlanta. The defendants argue that the presence of four attorneys, particularly two who flew in from New York, was excessive given that the status conference lasted only forty-minutes and did not address the merits of the case. Instead, they argue that the preparation for and attendance 25 at the status conference could have been handled in no more than 2 hours by a single attorney in Atlanta. We agree that the presence of four attorneys at a forty-minute status conference that did not address the merits of the case was patently excessive. See Johnson v. Georgia Highway Express, Inc., 488 F.2d 714, 717 (5th Cir. 1974) (The time billed for excessive lawyers in a courtroom or conference when fewer would do, may obviously be discounted.”) abrogated on other grounds by Blanchard v. Bergeron, 489 U.S. 87, 109 S. Ct. 939 (1989). The presence of two attorneys from New York was particularly unnecessary given that lead counsel McClain and Weber, both of whom are located in Atlanta where the conference took place, were available and attended. Nor was it necessary for four separate attorneys to bill time preparing for such a short, non-merits related status conference. In our judgment, based on a review of the record and all the circumstances, we conclude that lead counsel McClain and Weber should not have needed more than 8 hours between them (i.e., 4 hours each) to prepare for and attend the status conference.12 12 While we agree with the defendants that it is possible that the preparation for and attendance at the status conference could have been limited to 2 hours, we also recognize that the measure of reasonable hours is determined by the 26 We find unavailing the plaintiffs’ contention, raised for the first time at oral argument, that the extensive preparation for and presence of four attorneys at the status conference was required because they expected there to be argument on the merits of the preliminary injunction motion. The plaintiffs do not point to any evidence at all in the record to support the claim that they expected argument on the merits. Moreover, it is unreasonable to bill hours based on an unfounded expectation that there might be argument on the merits when a simple call or letter to the district court judge's chambers would have clarified the agenda of the status conference. Accordingly, we conclude that the district court abused its discretion by not excluding as excessive any of the hours billed by the four attorneys for preparing and attending the status conference. In addition, because the attendance of Hansen and Beeson at the conference was excessive, their travel time to the conference should have been excluded. The hours that should have been excluded in this regard are: 11.25 of McClain's hours; .7 of Weber's hours; 21.4 of Hansen's hours; and 9.65 of Beeson's hours. profession’s judgment of the time that may be conscionably billed and not the least time in which it might theoretically have been done.” Norman, 836 F.2d at 1306. 27 d. Preparing for and Attending the Internet Demonstration Prior to the district court’s ruling on the plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction, the plaintiffs put on a live, in-court demonstration of Internet technology. That demonstration consisted primarily of the plaintiffs’ expert, a Georgia Institute of Technology professor, describing various features and characteristics of Internet technology for two hours. Although the plaintiffs sent four lawyers to the demonstration, only McClain spoke, and his role was essentially limited to introducing the expert.13 The defendants contend that the district court abused its discretion by failing to exclude any of the hours billed by four of the plaintiffs’ attorneys for preparation for, travel to, and attendance at the two-hour Internet demonstration. The defendants argue that, at a minimum, because only McClain spoke at the demonstration, the hours billed by the other attorneys who attended the demonstration, including the travel time of Hansen and Beeson from New York, should have been excluded as unnecessary. In addition, they point out that four attorneys billed over 8 hours each to meet with the expert and review the two- 13 McClain's words cover less than five pages of the fifty-four page transcript of the demonstration. 28 hour presentation the day before it was put on. The defendants argue that McClain should have been able to handle those tasks on his own and therefore the time billed by the other lawyers was redundant.14 We agree that the presence of four attorneys at the demonstration was patently excessive. The demonstration was an opportunity for the plaintiffs’ expert to provide the district court with technical knowledge on the Internet. It was not a hearing to decide legal or factual issues requiring the participation of so many attorneys. Accordingly, we conclude that while the district court did not abuse its discretion in allowing the plaintiffs to recover the hours billed by McClain, the only lawyer who played an active role at the demonstration, and Weber, the other lead counsel in Atlanta, for attending the demonstration, it was an abuse of discretion not to exclude as excessive the hours billed by the two additional attorneys for traveling to and attending the demonstration. See Johnson, 488 F.2d at 717 (The time billed for excessive lawyers in a courtroom 14 The defendants also argue that the plaintiffs’ attorneys impermissibly billed hours for performing non-legal services in connection with the demonstration, such as obtaining equipment, and that those hours should be excluded. Because defendants did not raise this argument before the district court, we will not consider it on appeal. See, e.g., Odum v. Clark, 748 F.2d 1538, 1543 (11th Cir. 1984). 29 or conference when fewer would do, may obviously be discounted.”). The time that should have been excluded in this regard are 12.8 hours for Hansen and 11 hours for Beeson. We also believe that having four lawyers meet with the expert and review his presentation the day before the demonstration constitutes duplicative effort, absent some explanation why a squad of attorneys was necessary. As discussed above, the fee applicant may recover for the time of multiple attorneys spent on some task if he carries his burden of showing that the time spent by those attorneys reflects the distinct contribution of each lawyer to the case and the customary practice of multiple-lawyer litigation. The plaintiffs did not carry that burden. Neither the billing records nor the affidavits filed by the plaintiffs’ attorneys shed any light on the distinct contribution, if any, each of the four attorneys made to the task of meeting the expert and reviewing his presentation the day before it was made. The billing records merely describe the time as follows: “review presentation with co-counsel and Klein” (McClain) ; “[m]eet with Kline and work on demonstration” (Weber); “[p]repare for court” (Hansen); “[p]repare Klein, expert for hearing” (Beeson). Nor did the plaintiffs, once they were apprised in the district court of the 30 defendants’ objection to those hours, take the opportunity to supplement the record--either through additional affidavits or by requesting an evidentiary hearing--to show the distinct contribution of each lawyer. Accordingly, the district court abused its discretion by not excluding the hours billed by three of the attorneys (those other than McClain) for the task of meeting with the expert and reviewing the presentation the day before the demonstration. The hours that should have been excluded in this regard are: 8.9 for Weber, 8 for Hansen, and 9.8 for Beeson. e. Conferencing among the attorneys The defendants contend that the district court abused its discretion by failing to exclude excessive hours for internal communications among the plaintiffs’ attorneys (e.g., telephone conferences and e-mail). Because they did not raise this argument before the district court, we will not consider it on appeal. See, e.g., Odum v. Clark, 748 F.2d 1538, 1543 (11th Cir. 1984).