Marquis v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, 15-659

Petitioner Christine Marquis filed a Vaccine Program petition alleging Guillain-Barré syndrome from a November 6, 2012 influenza vaccination; petition filed June 25, 2015.
Parties stipulated to damages on October 27, 2016; Special Master Corcoran adopted the stipulation the same day.
Petitioner sought final attorney’s fees and costs totaling $31,565.63 (fees for two attorneys, paralegal time, and $5,000.13 in costs); no out-of-pocket costs claimed.
Respondent stated statutory requirements for fees/costs were satisfied and deferred to the special master on the amount.
Special Master found paralegal and administrative costs reasonable and approved them in full, approved Lawrence Cohan’s fees as requested, but reduced David Carney’s hourly rate from $290 to $275 (2014–Oct 2016), producing a $1,475.50 reduction.
After the rate adjustment, the total award was $30,090.13, payable jointly to Petitioner and counsel; clerk directed to enter judgment absent review.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Entitlement to attorney’s fees and costs	Marquis sought full recovery of requested fees and costs as reasonable and incurred for successful prosecution	HHS agreed statutory requirements met; deferred to special master on amount	Fees/costs available under statute awarded, subject to rate adjustment
Hourly rate for lead counsel (Lawrence Cohan)	Requested $400/hr for limited hours	Respondent did not object to Cohan’s requested rate	Cohan’s requested fees awarded in full
Hourly rate for David Carney	Requested $290/hr for 2014–Oct 2016; requested additional 2.5 hours for reply	Respondent deferred to special master discretion on amount	Carney’s rate reduced to $275/hr for 2014–Oct 2016; additional 2.5 hours for reply awarded in full
Paralegal and administrative costs	Sought $1,087.50 for paralegal time and $5,000.13 in costs	Respondent did not contest these costs	Paralegal and administrative costs awarded in full