Opinion ID: 4020402
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Consent Decree Extension

Text: Defendants complain that counsel billed excessive time, 335 hours, for obtaining the 2013 Decree extension, despite the narrow issue. This included 150 hours preparing the motion to extend; 65 hours preparing a reply brief; and 80 hours for argument preparation, attendance, and travel. Defendants claim that this time for the extension (which was not appealed) was unreasonable because counsel was already familiar with NEOCH. The district court specifically found that the hours expended in obtaining the Decree extension were reasonable because the case had a lengthy record, it involved numerous provisions of the Ohio Revised Code and parallel state and federal litigation, the legal issues were “complex and unsettled,” and the briefing scheduled was expedited. Moreover, it found that, based on new record evidence from the 2012 election, an extension through the next presidential cycle was necessary to prevent the disenfranchisement of SSN-4 voters. Again, Defendants’ conclusory allegations of “too much time,” in light of the district court’s “concise but clear explanation” based on its substantial experience with these proceedings, cannot establish error.