Miron v. Secretary of Health and Human Services
16-762
| Fed. Cl. | Nov 14, 2017Background
- Petitioner David Miron filed a Vaccine Program petition alleging Guillain-Barré syndrome from a July 10, 2013 Tdap vaccination; parties stipulated to damages and the Special Master adopted that stipulation in October 2017.
- Petitioner moved for final attorney’s fees and costs seeking $92,865.00 ($71,636.00 in fees; $21,229.00 in costs).
- Respondent stated statutory prerequisites for an award were met and deferred to the Special Master on the amount.
- Petitioner requested forum-based hourly rates for counsel (Ms. Kathleen Loucks and Ms. Sheila Bjorklund) and paralegal rates; also claimed substantial costs for obtaining/managing voluminous medical records (~13,000 pages) and expert fees.
- The Special Master found hours reasonable and awarded the requested hours and most costs, but reduced (1) Ms. Loucks’s 2017 rate slightly using the PPI-OL inflation method and (2) Dr. Kelkar’s expert rate from $800/hr to $400/hr.
- Final award granted in part: $91,128.20 to be paid jointly to Petitioner and counsel, representing all attorneys’ fees and costs under 42 U.S.C. § 300aa-15(e).
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entitlement to attorney’s fees and costs | Miron sought full statutory fees/costs after successful stipulation | Respondent agreed statutory requirements met and left amount to court | Fees and costs award appropriate; motion granted in part |
| Hourly rates for counsel | Request forum/in‑forum rates for counsel (Loucks, Bjorklund) using Attorney Fee Survey and 3.7% inflation | No objection to amount; court discretion on appropriate rates and inflation metric | Court awarded requested rates but adjusted Loucks’s 2017 rate downward using PPI‑OL inflation (to $349/hr) |
| Reasonableness of hours billed | Hours and use of paralegals were efficient and appropriate | Respondent did not object to entries | All requested hours awarded in full |
| Expert and litigation costs | Sought $10,200 for experts ($7,000 for life‑care calc; $3,200 for Dr. Kelkar at $800/hr) and ~$4,235 for litigation support/database | Respondent did not object to costs generally | Awarded life‑care expert in full; reduced Dr. Kelkar’s rate to $400/hr (reducing $1,600); awarded record retrieval/management and litigation‑support costs in full given high document volume |
Key Cases Cited
- Avera v. Sec’y of Health & Human Servs., 515 F.3d 1343 (Fed. Cir.) (forum‑rate test for attorney’s fees in Vaccine Program)