Opinion ID: 8312766
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Time Spent on Filings

Text: In addition to arguing that the use of two attorneys was unreasonable, Defendant also argues that Plaintiff's attorneys spent an unreasonable amount of time drafting the filings in this matter. Defendant specifically objects to the amount of time that Plaintiff's counsel spent on the complaint and on Joint Status Reports. Def.'s Mot., ECF No. 27, 19. If a court determines that a waste of effort has occurred, the court has the discretion to simply reduce the proposed fee by a reasonable amount without an item-by-item accounting. Laborers' Intern. Union of N. Am. v. Brand Energy Serv. LLC , 746 F.Supp.2d 121 , 126 (D.D.C. 2010). But, here, the Court finds that Plaintiff's counsel did not spend an unreasonable amount of time drafting filings. Excluding Mr. Mastriani's time, Plaintiff's counsel spent 10.6 hours drafting and reviewing the complaint. Dec. of Seth A. Watkins, ECF No. 24-1, 6-7. Plaintiff's complaint, to which multiple exhibits were attached, was 19 pages long and contained a relatively complicated factual section which was necessary for explaining both why Plaintiff required the documents and how the documents related to the public benefit. See generally Complaint, ECF No. 1. Given the comprehensive nature of the complaint, the Court finds that approximately 10 hours spent drafting and reviewing is not unreasonable. See Elec.Privacy Info. Ctr. v. FBI, 80 F.Supp.3d 149 , 158 (D.D.C. 2015) (finding the fee request unreasonable, and instead awarding 9.5 hours of attorneys' fees for work on a 9-page complaint). Next, the Court finds that Plaintiff's counsel did not request unreasonable compensation for time spent on Joint Status Reports. Defendant contends that Plaintiff's counsel billed an unreasonable number of hours for work done on Joint Status Reports because Plaintiff's counsel added superfluous details to the reports. Having reviewed the parties' eight Joint Status Reports filed throughout the litigation, the Court finds that they are not unreasonably filled with needless details. See generally Joint Status Reports, ECF Nos. 10, 13, 15, 16, 18, 20, 21, 23. Ranging from two to five pages, the Joint Status Reports are of a length reasonable to inform the Court of the status of the parties ongoing efforts to reach a mutually agreeable decision on the release of Plaintiff's requested records. There is, however, one outlying Joint Status Report. The report filed on November 13, 2018, was significantly longer than the others at 12 pages. Joint Status Report, ECF No. 18. Despite the length, the information included in that status report was not superfluous. The parties spent approximately two pages jointly describing the status of the litigation. Defendant then spent four and a half pages outlining its position on the remaining issues. And, Plaintiff likewise spent four and a half pages outlining her position on the remaining issues. Given that both parties provided equal amounts of information, the Court finds that Plaintiff did not add superfluous information to the filing. Moreover, given that this report included a review of the disclosures that had been made thus far, an explanation of disputed redactions, a dispute on the scope of Defendant's search, and a briefing schedule, the Court concludes that the length of this report is not unreasonable.  Accordingly, the Court concludes that Plaintiff's counsel did not spend unreasonable amounts of time on their filings, and the Court will not reduce Plaintiff's attorneys' fees on this ground.