Wilson v. Secretary of Health and Human Services
15-551
| Fed. Cl. | Mar 6, 2017Background
- Petitioners (Roby and Jeana Wilson) filed a Vaccine Act claim on behalf of their child J.W., alleging brain injury/autism caused by MMR, Hep A, and varicella vaccines given June 1, 2012.
- The special master found the record lacked evidence of causation and stated the case lacked reasonable basis after a Rule 5 status conference on June 7, 2016; petitioners voluntarily dismissed the petition and the case was dismissed on August 9, 2016.
- Petitioners sought $33,936.02 in attorneys’ fees and costs plus $400.49 in personal costs on December 7, 2016.
- Respondent did not contest good faith or reasonable basis but left the amount to the special master’s discretion.
- The special master awarded fees and costs only for work through and including the June 7 Rule 5 conference and for winding up the case, applied established GW clinic hourly rates, and reduced billed hours for administrative tasks, paralegal misclassification, vagueness, block billing, and duplicative/intra-office billing.
- Final award: $27,727.88 in total (including $400.49 to petitioners and the remainder payable jointly to petitioners and counsel).
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether fees/costs may be awarded after dismissal | Petitioners sought full requested fees and costs despite dismissal | Respondent did not contest good faith or reasonable basis and deferred amount to the court | Fees/costs may be awarded if good faith and reasonable basis existed; here award limited to work through Rule 5 conference and winding up |
| Whether a reasonable basis existed and its temporal scope | Petitioners contended claim had reasonable basis | Respondent raised no challenge; special master questioned basis after Rule 5 | Special master found good faith and reasonable basis existed up to and including the June 7, 2016 Rule 5 conference, but not thereafter |
| Appropriate hourly rates for clinic attorneys and students | Petitioners requested rates consistent with Miller decision (Shoemaker, Gentry, Knickelbein, students) | Respondent did not dispute rates | Special master adopted the Miller-established rates: Shoemaker and Gentry rates for 2015, Knickelbein at $350, students at $145 (2015) |
| Whether/ how to reduce claimed hours for billing deficiencies | Petitioners submitted detailed billing entries and requested full payment | Respondent left reductions to special master’s discretion | Special master reduced hours for (1) administrative/secretarial tasks, (2) attorney billing for paralegal work, (3) vague entries, (4) block billing, and (5) duplicative/overstaffed intra-office communications — overall 20% reduction to attorneys’ fees and 20% to law student fees; full reimbursement for reasonable costs (filing, records, postage, copies) |
Key Cases Cited
- Wasson v. Secretary of Health & Human Services, 24 Cl. Ct. 482 (Cl. Ct.) (trial courts may rely on prior experience to reduce hours and rates)
- Saxton v. Secretary of Health & Human Services, 3 F.3d 1517 (Fed. Cir. 1993) (special masters may use prior experience reviewing fee applications)
- Rochester v. United States, 18 Cl. Ct. 379 (Cl. Ct. 1989) (clerical/secretarial work is not billable under attorney fee awards)
- Bell v. Secretary of Health & Human Services, 18 Cl. Ct. 751 (Cl. Ct. 1989) (fee applications must sufficiently detail time billed)
- Sabella v. Secretary of Health & Human Services, 86 Fed. Cl. 201 (Fed. Cl. 2009) (affirming reductions for overstaffing and duplicative billing)