Opinion ID: 4555484
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Fees incurred at trial

Text: Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54(d)(2) addresses claims for attorney’s fees and costs: (A) Claim to Be by Motion. A claim for attorney’s fees and related nontaxable expenses must be made by motion unless the substantive law requires those fees to be proved at trial as an element of damages. (B) Timing and Contents of the Motion. Unless a statute or a court order provides otherwise, the motion must:
judgment; (ii) specify the judgment and the statute, rule, or other grounds entitling the movant to the award; (iii) state the amount sought or provide a fair estimate of it; and (iv) disclose, if the court so orders, the terms of any agreement about fees for the services for which the claim is made. FED. R. CIV. P. 54(d)(2)(A)–(B). A new 14-day deadline “for filing will automatically begin if a new judgment is entered following a reversal or remand by the appellate court or the granting of a motion under Rule 59.” FED. R. CIV. P. 54 advisory committee’s note to 1993 amendment. 7 Case: 19-50857 Document: 00515526351 Page: 8 Date Filed: 08/13/2020 No. 19-50857 “Judgment” is defined as “a decree and any order from which an appeal lies.” FED. R. CIV. P. 54(a). Zimmerman recognizes that his Rule 59(e) motion was denied on October 26, 2016, making a motion for attorneys’ fees due by November 9, 2016. He says that there is flexibility on timing, though, because the Western District of Texas Local Rules give district courts discretion to find his fee request to have been timely, and that the district court did not sufficiently explain why denying his request was necessary or appropriate. The referenced local rule provides: (1) . . . [A] claim for fees shall be made by motion not later than 14 days after entry of judgment pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54(d)(2) and pursuant to the following provisions. . . . The motion shall include a supporting document organized chronologically by activity or project, listing attorney name, date, and hours expended on the particular activity or project, as well as an affidavit certifying (1) that the hours expended were actually expended on the topics stated, and (2) that the hours expended and rate claimed were reasonable. . . . ... (3) A motion for award of attorney’s fees filed beyond the 14day period may be deemed untimely and a waiver of entitlement to fees. W.D. TEX. Civ. R. 7(j). According to Zimmerman, because this rule states that a late-filed motion “may be deemed untimely,” the district court had discretion to grant his motion but erred in failing to consider (1) Zimmerman’s misled “effort to preserve judicial and party resources” (i.e., waiting to file his request until after the appeal was resolved), and (2) the lack of prejudice to the City if the motion were granted. Zimmerman concedes that he did not file a motion for attorneys’ fees within the 14-day time period provided by Rule 54(d), and that this was a 8 Case: 19-50857 Document: 00515526351 Page: 9 Date Filed: 08/13/2020 No. 19-50857 mistake with regard to the fees incurred at trial. “This failure to file within the allotted period serves as a waiver of [his] claim for attorneys’ fees.” United Indus., 91 F.3d at 766. Even if the district court had discretion to excuse the delay in filing, and we do not hold it did, no error occurred by failing to exercise the discretion. Zimmerman waived his right to request fees incurred at trial.