Carpenters Pension Trust Fund for Northern California et al v. Lindquist
Filing
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ORDER by Judge Samuel Conti granting 50 Motion for Attorney Fees (sclc2, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 9/29/2011) (Additional attachment(s) added on 9/29/2011: # 1 proof of service) (tdm, COURT STAFF).
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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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CARPENTERS PENSION TRUST FUND FOR
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA, et al.
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Plaintiffs,
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v.
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For the Northern District of California
United States District Court
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MARK ALAN LINDQUIST,
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Defendant.
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) Case No. 10-3386 SC
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) ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFFS'
) MOTION FOR ATTORNEY'S FEES
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I.
INTRODUCTION
Before the court is a Motion for Attorney's Fees filed by
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Plaintiffs Board of Trustees of the Carpenters Pension Trust
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Fund for Northern California, et al. ("Plaintiffs"), against
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Defendant Mark Alan Lindquist ("Defendant").
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("Mot.").
ECF No. 50
Defendant did not file an Opposition.
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II.
BACKGROUND
This action arises from Plaintiffs' efforts to recover
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withdrawal liability from Defendant under the Employee
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Retirement Income Security Act ("ERISA").
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Court granted summary judgment in favor of Plaintiffs.
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Court held that, pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 1451(b), Plaintiffs
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were entitled to $954,508.00 in unpaid principal withdrawal
On July 19, 2011, the
The
liability, $95,450.80 in liquidated damages, applicable interest
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in an amount to be determined, and attorney's fees and costs.
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Id. at 17.
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motion for attorneys' fees and costs.
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Plaintiffs filed the instant Motion requesting attorney's fees
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in the amount of $51,825.00 and costs in the amount of $515.58.
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Mot. at 2.
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summary judgment against him.
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The Court granted Plaintiffs thirty days to file a
Id.
On August 11, 2011,
On August 12, 2011, Defendant appealed the grant of
ECF No. 52 ("Not. of Appeal.").
For the following reasons, the Court finds these amounts to
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For the Northern District of California
United States District Court
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be reasonable and GRANTS Plaintiffs' Motion.
The Court STAYS
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this Order until Defendant's appeal is resolved.
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III. LEGAL STANDARD
Under ERISA, the award of reasonable attorney's fees and
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costs to a pension plan is mandatory in all actions to collect
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unpaid employer withdrawal liabilities.
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Board of Trustees, W. Conf. Teamsters Pension Trust Fund, 777
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F.2d 1371, 1373-75 (9th Cir. 1985).
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attorney's fees in such an action, district courts utilize a
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two-step "hybrid lodestar/multiplier" approach.
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Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 480 F.3d 942, 945 (9th Cir. 2007).
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First, the court establishes a lodestar by multiplying the
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number of hours reasonably expended on the litigation by a
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reasonable hourly rate.
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rate, the court should consider "the experience, skill, and
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reputation of the attorney requesting fees."
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party seeking fees bears the burden of documenting the hours
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expended in the litigation and must submit evidence supporting
Id.
Lads Trucking Co. v.
To calculate reasonable
Welch v.
In determining a reasonable hourly
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Id. at 946.
The
those hours and the rates claimed.
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exceptional cases," the district court may adjust the lodestar
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upward or downward using a multiplier based on facts not
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Second, in "rare and
subsumed in the initial lodestar calculation.
Id.
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IV.
DISCUSSION
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Plaintiffs' counsel have submitted detailed billing records
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demonstrating that they spent 222.8 hours litigating the instant
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case.
ECF Nos. 50-1 ("McDonough Decl."), 50-2 ("Billing
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For the Northern District of California
United States District Court
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Records").
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attending case management conferences, conferring with
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Defendant, propounding requests for admissions and requests for
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production of documents, taking Defendant's deposition,
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preparing the motion for summary judgment, and preparing the
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instant Motion.
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Plaintiffs have provided an itemized accounting of the number of
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hours spent on each task.
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have been reasonably expended on this litigation.
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These hours comprise time spent preparing pleadings,
McDonough Decl. ¶ 8; Billing Records.
Id.
The Court finds the hours to
Plaintiffs' counsel charged an hourly rate of between $225
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and $275 for attorney time and $115 for paralegal time.
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McDonough Decl. ¶¶ 4, 9.
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charged for this litigation are consistent with prevailing
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market rates for litigation involving union-sponsored benefit
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funds.
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plan's attorney regarding the prevailing fees in the community.
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United Steelworkers v. Retirement Income Plan for Hourly-Rated
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Employees of Asarco, Inc., 512 F.3d 555, 565 (9th Cir. 2008).
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The rates charged are also in accord with rates approved in
Id. ¶ 6.
Counsel attest that the hourly fees
A court can rely on the declaration of the
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comparable cases in this district.
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of the Boilermaker Vacation Trust v. Skelly, Inc., 389 F.Supp.2d
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1222, 1227-1228 (N.D. Cal. 2005) (finding attorney rates of $210
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per hour and $345 per hour to be reasonable in an ERISA action
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seeking payment of delinquent contributions).
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Court finds Plaintiffs' counsel's hourly rates to be reasonable.
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The Court finds no rare or exceptional circumstances that
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warrant adjusting the fee award in this case upward or downward.
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Accordingly, the Court finds that Plaintiffs are entitled to
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For the Northern District of California
United States District Court
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See, e.g., Bd. of Trustees
Therefore, the
recover a lodestar amount of $51,825.00.
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Plaintiffs have also submitted billing records showing that
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they incurred $515.58 in costs of delivering pleadings and other
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documents to this Court.
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Records.
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costs as part of their reasonable attorney's fees.
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the Construction Industry and Laborers Health and Welfare Trust
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v. Redland Ins. Co., 460 F.3d 1253, 1257 (9th Cir. 2006).
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Accordingly, the Court finds that Plaintiffs are entitled to
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recover a total sum of $52,340.58.
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McDonough Decl. at ¶ 12; Billing
Plaintiffs are entitled to recover these delivery
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Trustees of
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V.
CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, the Court GRANTS the Motion for
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Attorney's Fees filed by Plaintiffs Board of Trustees of the
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Carpenters Pension Trust Fund for Northern California, et al.
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against Defendant Mark Alan Lindquist in the amount of
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$52,340.58.
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rules on Defendant's appeal and returns the case to this Court's
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jurisdiction.
This Order is hereby STAYED until the Ninth Circuit
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For the Northern District of California
United States District Court
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
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Dated: September 29, 2011
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
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