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8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
9 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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11 , ) Case No. DSF
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12 Plaintiff, ) ORDER RE REQUIREMENTS FOR
) MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS’ FEES
13 v. )
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14 , )
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15 Defendant. )
______________________________ )
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17 Format of Time and Expense Records
18 In addition to any other requirements imposed by statute or case law,
19 motions for attorneys’ fees must include time and expense records prepared in the
20 format described in the Court’s separate Order re Format of Time and Expense
21 Records.
22 Conference of Counsel
23 Before filing a motion for attorneys’ fees, counsel must meet and confer in
24 person or by videoconference pursuant to Local Rule 7-3 to attempt in good faith
25 to agree on the reasonable amount of fees to be awarded (if the Court decides to
26 award fees), keeping in mind that a contested request for attorneys’ fees “should
27 not result in a second major litigation.” Hensley v. Eckerhart, 461 U.S. 424, 437
28 (1983) (“Ideally, of course, litigants will settle the amount of a fee. Where
1 settlement is not possible, the fee applicant bears the burden of establishing
2 entitlement to an award and documenting the appropriate hours expended and
3 hourly rates.”). Prior to the conference, the moving party must do at least the
4 following:
5 1. Provide opposing counsel with the billing records on which the
6 motion will be based, and specify the entries for which compensation is and is not
7 sought. These records may be redacted to prevent disclosure of material protected
8 by the attorney-client privilege or work product doctrine. However, as to those
9 redacted items, counsel shall submit a declaration describing the nature of the
10 services with sufficient detail to allow opposing counsel to determine if the item is
11 objectionable.
12 2. Inform opposing counsel of the hourly rates that will be claimed
13 for each lawyer, paralegal, or other timekeeper. If moving counsel or other
14 timekeepers have performed any legal work on an hourly basis during the period
15 covered by the motion, moving counsel shall provide representative business
16 records sufficient to show the types of litigation in which such hourly rates were
17 paid and the rates that were paid in each type. If moving counsel has been paid on
18 an hourly basis in the case in question or in litigation of the same type as the case
19 in question, records showing the rates paid (not charged) for those services must
20 be provided. If moving counsel will rely on other evidence to establish
21 appropriate hourly rates, such as evidence of rates charged by attorneys of
22 comparable experience and qualifications or evidence of rates used in previous
23 awards by courts or administrative agencies, moving counsel shall provide such
24 other evidence.
25 3. Furnish evidence of the actual cost of any nontaxable expenses to
26 be sought by the motion;
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1 4. Respond to any reasonable request for additional documentation
2 or information.
3 By providing opposing counsel with information about hours, billing rates,
4 and nontaxable expenses, moving counsel will not be deemed to make any
5 admission or waive any argument about the relevance or effect of such
6 information in determining an appropriate award.
7 All information furnished by moving counsel shall be treated as
8 confidential by opposing counsel. The information shall be used solely for
9 purposes of the fee litigation, and shall be disclosed to other persons, if at all, only
10 in court filings or hearings related to the fee litigation. If opposing counsel
11 proposes to disclose any of the information in a court filing or hearing, opposing
12 counsel shall provide moving counsel with prior written notice and a reasonable
13 opportunity to request an appropriate protective order.
14 Joint Statement
15 If there is no agreement as to the fees and costs to be paid, the parties are to
16 produce a Joint Statement for submission. At least seven days prior to the
17 conference of counsel, the moving party must provide to the opposing party a
18 draft of its portion of a Joint Statement that will eventually be submitted to the
19 Court. The Joint Statement must be formatted as a spreadsheet in Microsoft
20 Excel, or a table in WordPerfect or Microsoft Word. The spreadsheet or table
21 must include columns to identify: (1) the date of each time entry; (2) the biller for
22 each time entry; (3) a brief description of the task; (4) the number of hours
23 requested by the moving party for the task; (5) the number of hours, if any,
24 opposing party believes should be awarded for the task; and for disputed items (6)
25 a brief summary of moving party’s position; and (7) a brief summary of opposing
26 party’s position. This format is illustrated in Exhibit A to this Order. A separate
27 spreadsheet or table must be prepared for any nontaxable costs sought by the
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1 moving party. The spreadsheet or table of nontaxable costs must include columns
2 to identify: (1) the item; (2) the amount sought by the moving party for the item;
3 (3) the amount, if any, the opposing party believes should be awarded for the item;
4 and for disputed items (4) a brief summary of the moving party’s position; and (5)
5 a brief summary of the opposing party’s position.
6 Following the conference of counsel, and no more than 14 days before the
7 filing of the motion, the moving party must provide to the opposing party the final
8 version of its portion of the Joint Statement in an electronic format. The opposing
9 party shall then input its portion of the Joint Statement into the document and
10 return the completed document to the moving party at least seven days prior to the
11 filing of the motion. The moving party shall then file the Joint Statement at the
12 same time it files the motion. In addition to filing the Joint Statement, the moving
13 party shall email an electronic version of the Joint Statement to this Court’s
14 chambers ECF email inbox. Paper Chambers copies of invoices should be
15 unredacted. Redacted invoices should not be provided in paper to the Court.
16 Submissions that do not meet these requirements will not be considered. If
17 the Court concludes that counsel have not acted in good faith, it will refer the
18 matter to a special master at the expense of the parties.
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20 IT IS SO ORDERED.
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23 Dated: __________________________________
24 Dale S. Fischer
United States District Judge
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Exhibit A
ATTORNEY DATE DESCRIPTION TIME/AMT REDUCE BY OBJECTION REASON FOR
CHALLENGED OBJECTION RESPONSE TO
OBJECTION
J. DOE 1/2/08 T/C W/ 3.0 ($450) 3.0 ($450) Vague Fails to Meeting w/A.
Consultant articulate who Smith re
the consultant coroner
was & what the report &
conversation crime scene
concerned video
S. ROE 2/1/08 Research 2.0 ($300) 1.0 ($150) Excessive "Notice of No Response
Notice of Related Cases"
Related Cases is a form
document.
Attorney
shouldn't charge
for basic
research.
J. DOE 2/20/08 Calendared 1.0 ($150) 1.0 ($150) Clerical Atty cannot No Response
dates work charge for
clerical work
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