CAMDEN NATIONAL BANK v. SARAH HOLLOWAY M/V et al

Filing 37

ORDER GRANTING MOTION FOR ATTORNEY'S FEES granting 35 Motion for Attorney Fees By JUDGE JOHN A. WOODCOCK, JR. (CCS)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF MAINE
CAMDEN NATIONAL BANK,
Plaintiff,
v.

THOMAS M. CHAPPELL,
M/V SARAH HOLLOWAY
O.N. 1182997 her gear,
fittings, appurtenances, and
engines in rem and Thomas
M. Chappell, in personam,
Defendants.

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2:19-cv-00259-JAW

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ORDER GRANTING MOTION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES
On August 28, 2019, Plaintiff Camden National Bank (Camden National) filed
a motion for attorney’s fees seeking $16,042.50 in fees in an action to enforce a
maritime lien on the vessel “M/V Sarah Holloway” pursuant to 46 U.S.C. § 31325.
Mot. for Att’y’s Fees (ECF No. 35); Compl. ¶ 9 (ECF No. 1). 1 Along with its motion,
Camden National filed an affidavit in support of the award of legal fees as well as a
detailed accounting of the substance of the work performed, the hours spent on each
entry of work, and the billable rates for the attorneys and personnel involved. 2 Mot.
for Att’y’s Fees, Attachs. 1-2.

Camden National is entitled to attorney’s fees in this action because the mortgage on the Sarah
Holloway held by Camden National states that “[t]he net proceeds of any judicial or other sale . . . shall
be applied . . . FIRST: To the payment of all attorney’s fees, court costs, and any other expenses, losses,
charges, damages incurred or advances made by Mortgagee . . . caused by Owner’s default hereunder
or under the note secured hereby . . ..” Compl., Attach. 1 at 3 (ECF No. 1).
2
The exhibit filed by Camden National lists $16,667.50 worth of time entries—more than
requested in the Motion for Attorney’s Fees. The last entry, for $625 on August 28, 2019, is for
1

Camden National has satisfied the Court that, with one exception, the work
performed and the hourly rates charged were reasonable; however, the hourly rate
for work performed by Susan Fritts, a paralegal, must be discounted from $150, id.,
Attach. 2 at 11, to $99.75 per the approved lodestar rates laid out in TD Bank, N.A.
v. Estate of Woodman, No. 17-cv-00163-JAW, 2019 WL 2563813, at *4 (D. Me. June
21, 2019). Camden National seeks fees for 0.80 hours of Ms. Fritts’ work at a total
cost of $120. Mot. for Attorney’s Fees, Attach. 2 at 11. Discounted to an hourly rate
of $99.75, this amount is $79.80. Therefore, Camden National’s request for attorney’s
fees must be reduced by $40.20 to $16,002.30.
The Court GRANTS Camden National’s Motion for Attorney’s Fees (ECF No.
35), as altered by the Court, in the amount of $16,002.30.
SO ORDERED.
s/ John A. Woodcock, Jr.
JOHN A. WOODCOCK, JR.
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Dated this 4th day of October, 2019

“finaliz[ing] motion and affidavit for attorneys’ fees along with application for costs,” Mot. for Att’y’s
Fees, Attach. 2 at 11, accounts for the exact amount of this discrepancy. Based on First Circuit
authority that “fees for . . . work [on a fee petition] are often calculated at lower rates than those
deemed reasonable for the main litigation,” Torres-Rivera v. O’Neill-Cancel, 524 F.3d 331, 340 (1st Cir.
2008), the Court assumes that Camden National has decided not to pursue the $625 entry related to
its fee petition.
2