Olga Gorbacheva v. Abbott Laboratories Extended Disability Plan et al

Filing 72

ORDER Denying Without Prejudice #62 Plaintiff's Motion for Attorney's Fees. Signed by Judge Edward J. Davila on 2/15/2017. (ejdlc3S, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 2/15/2017)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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SAN JOSE DIVISION

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OLGA GORBACHEVA,

Case No. 5:14-cv-02524-EJD

Plaintiff,
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ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S
MOTION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES
WITHOUT PREJUDICE

v.
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ABBOTT LABORATORIES EXTENDED
DISABILITY PLAN, et al.,

Re: Dkt. No. 62

Defendants.

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Presently before the court is Plaintiff’s Motion for Attorney’s Fees and Costs. Dkt. No. 62.

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Based on the unresolved posture of the case and for the reasons explained briefly below, the court

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DENIES Plaintiff’s Motion without prejudice.

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A.

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Olga Gorbacheva (“Plaintiff”) initially filed this action under the Employee Retirement

Relevant Background

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Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”), 29 U.S.C. § 1132, against Abbott Laboratories Extended

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Disability Plan (“the Plan”) for failure to pay long-term disability (“LTD”) benefits. See Compl.,

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Dkt. No. 1. In May 2015, the Parties filed cross motions for summary judgment on all claims.

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See Dkt. Nos. 46, 49. On June 30, 2015, the court granted the Plan’s motion for summary

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judgment as to the second, third, and fourth causes of action. Dkt. No. 61 at 21. The court

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granted Plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment “only as to her claim that the Plan Administrator

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abused its discretion in denying her request for LTD benefits,” and remanded the case to the Plan

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Administrator “to make an initial determination as to whether Plaintiff was entitled to LTD

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benefits in light of all of the evidence that it should have considered in the first instance.” Id. at

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19, 21.

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On remand, the Plan Administrator upheld the termination of Plaintiff’s extended disability
benefits, issuing the decision by letter dated December 29, 2016. See Dkt. No.71 at 1. Based on
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Case No.: 5:14-cv-02524-EJD
ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES WITHOUT
PREJUDICE

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the Plan’s decision, Plaintiff now reasserts her ERISA claim and challenges the Plan’s denial of

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her LTD benefits. Accordingly, on January 23, 2017, the court granted Plaintiff’s Motion to

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Remove Administrative Closure (Dkt. No. 68) and reopened the case for further proceedings.

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Dkt. No. 70.
Attorney’s Fees

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B.

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In light of the case being reopened, as well as the Parties’ suggestion that there remain

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numerous unresolved issues requiring future litigation, the court directed the Parties to address

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whether Plaintiff’s Motion for Attorney Fees and Costs should be considered at this time, or

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whether that Motion would be more appropriately brought and decided upon final resolution of the

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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case. See Dkt. No 70.
Plaintiff argues that the court should consider the Motion and award fees without any

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further delay because, “regardless of what might happen in the future,” the court’s order

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remanding the case to the Plan Administrator “was a significant success on the merits and

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warrants an award of attorney’s fees and costs.” Joint Statement at 9, Dkt. No. 71. It is Plaintiff’s

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position that “the proceedings that will take place after remand will consider a new record and new

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legal and factual issues, and thus there is no reason to delay resolution of the attorney’s fee issues

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as they pertain to the original dispute.” Id. In contrast, Defendants argue that the Motion would

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be more appropriately and efficiently brought and decided upon final resolution of the case and,

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until such resolution, “the full relative merits of the parties’ positions and the degree of Plaintiff’s

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success on the merits of her claim are unknown.” Id. at 9-10.

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The court agrees with Defendants. First, the Parties identify a variety of contentious and

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ongoing issues to be resolved by way of continuing litigation. It would therefore be inefficient for

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the court to consider the instant Motion for Attorney’s Fees when Plaintiff and/or Defendants will

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likely bring additional fees motions at the conclusion of the case. Thus, it is more productive and

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more reasonable for the court to address any such motions upon final resolution of this matter.

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See Forest Grove Sch. Dist. v. Student, 2013 WL 4012744, at *2 (D. Or. 2013) (granting stay of

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Case No.: 5:14-cv-02524-EJD
ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES WITHOUT
PREJUDICE

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attorney’s fees motion, explaining that “[a] trial court may exercise its discretion by finding it is

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‘efficient for its own docket and the fairest course for the parties to enter a stay of an action before

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it, pending resolution of independent proceedings which bear upon the case.’”) (quoting Leyva v.

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Certified Grocers of Cal., Ltd., 593 F.2d 857, 863-64 (9th Cir. 1979)); Mediterranean Enter., Inc.

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v. Ssangyong Corp., 708 F.2d 1458, 1465 (9th Cir.1983) (“The trial court “possesses the inherent

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power to control its own docket and calendar.”)

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Second, while it is possible, as Plaintiff argues, for a court to award attorney’s fees even
where the plaintiff does not prevail on every issue in the litigation, or even without specific

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knowledge of the ultimate monetary benefits conferred to a plaintiff, doing so here is unnecessary

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and premature. The current, unresolved posture of the case leaves the court with little guidance as

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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to many of the factors relevant to attorney’s fees determinations. See Hummell v. S.E. Rykoff&

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Co., 634 F.2d 446, 453 (9th Cir. 1980) (outlining the relevant factors as: (1) the degree of the

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opposing parties’ culpability or bad faith; (2) the ability of the opposing parties to satisfy an award

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of fees; (3) whether an award of fees against the opposing parties would deter others from acting

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under similar circumstances; (4) whether the parties requesting fees sought to benefit all

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participants and beneficiaries of an ERISA plan or to resolve a significant legal question regarding

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ERISA; and (5) the relative merits of the parties’ positions). Thus, final resolution of the case will

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provide a more complete record for the court to evaluate and make any potential fee award.

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C.

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Based on the foregoing, Plaintiff’s Motion for Attorney’s Fees and Costs (Dkt. No. 62) is

Order

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DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE. Plaintiff may again seek attorney’s fees and costs of suit

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upon the conclusion of this matter.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: February 15, 2017
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EDWARD J. DAVILA
United States District Judge
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Case No.: 5:14-cv-02524-EJD
ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES WITHOUT
PREJUDICE