757 F.3d 1015
9th Cir.2014Background
- Legal Voice (formerly Northwest Women’s Law Center) was served with a subpoena duces tecum by plaintiffs in district court and incurred expenses, including attorneys’ fees, complying with it.
- The Ninth Circuit previously held that under Fed. R. Civ. P. 45(d)(2)(B)(ii) Legal Voice was entitled to at least a portion of those district-court expenses, including attorneys’ fees. (Legal Voice v. Stormans, 738 F.3d 1178.)
- Legal Voice moved for attorneys’ fees on appeal after prevailing on the entitlement question before the Ninth Circuit.
- The panel considered whether entitlement to fees in the district court carried with it an entitlement to recover reasonable attorneys’ fees incurred on appeal.
- The panel also addressed whether Legal Voice’s use of pro bono counsel affected its ability to recover appellate attorneys’ fees.
- The panel granted the motion for fees on appeal and transferred determination of the fee amount to the district court under Ninth Circuit Rule 39-1.8.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Legal Voice is entitled to attorneys’ fees on appeal after being entitled to fees in the district court under Rule 45(d)(2)(B)(ii) | Legal Voice: entitlement to district-court fees implies entitlement to appellate fees incurred in establishing that right | Stormans: (argued) fees on appeal need not follow district-court fee entitlement (or that appellate fees should not be awarded) | Court: Granted — prevailing on entitlement justifies award of reasonable appellate attorneys’ fees; motion granted and amount remanded to district court |
| Whether use of pro bono counsel prevents recovery of attorneys’ fees on appeal | Legal Voice: pro bono representation does not bar recovery of reasonable fees | Stormans: (argued) pro bono status should limit or bar fee recovery | Court: Rejected — pro bono status does not bar recovery; reasonable fees recoverable (Blanchard v. Bergeron cited) |
Key Cases Cited
- Stewart v. Gates, 987 F.2d 1450 (9th Cir.) (appellate attorneys’ fees may be awarded under fee-shifting statutes when party successfully defends on appeal)
- Planned Parenthood of Cent. & N. Ariz. v. Arizona, 789 F.2d 1348 (9th Cir.) (awarding attorneys’ fees on appeal under § 1988 where party prevailed)
- In re S. Cal. Sunbelt Developers, Inc., 608 F.3d 456 (9th Cir.) (statutory fee awards may include time spent establishing entitlement to fees)
- Camacho v. Bridgeport Fin., Inc., 523 F.3d 973 (9th Cir.) (courts should compensate attorneys for time reasonably spent obtaining fee awards)
- Blanchard v. Bergeron, 489 U.S. 87 (U.S.) (pro bono representation does not bar the award of a reasonable fee)