Griffin v. Berghuis et al

Filing 146

ORDER granting in part 135 Motion for Entry of Judgment. Signed by District Judge John Corbett O'Meara. (WBar)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN
SOUTHERN DIVISION
RANDLE GRIFFIN,
Plaintiff,
Case No. 11-14876
v.
Hon. John Corbett O’Meara
LOUIS CONDON, et al.,
Defendants.
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ORDER GRANTING IN PART
PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR ENTRY OF JUDGMENT
Before the court is Plaintiff’s motion for entry of judgment, which
Defendants oppose. The parties chiefly disagree regarding whether Plaintiff is
entitled to prejudgment interest, as well as whether the judgment should provide
for an award of costs and attorneys’ fees.
It is within the court’s discretion to award prejudgment interest, the purpose
of which is to “compensate the plaintiff for the delay between the time the cause of
action arose and the verdict.” Conte v. General Housewares Corp., 215 F.3d 628,
640 (6th Cir. 2000). See also Green v. Nevers, 196 F.3d 627, 633 (6th Cir. 1999)
(“[I]n the absence of explicit statutory direction on the issue, the award of
prejudgment interest is ... in the discretion of the court.”); Pucci v. Somers, 834 F.
Supp. 2d 690, 705 (E.D. Mich. 2011), aff’d sub nom. Pucci v. Nineteenth Dist.

Court, 596 F. App’x 460 (6th Cir. 2015).
The jury awarded Plaintiff $500 in “actual/compensatory/presumed or
nominal damages” from each Defendant. (Plaintiff does not seek prejudgment
interest on the punitive damage award.) The parties agree that if prejudgment
interest is awarded, based on an interest rate of .82%, the amount at issue is $21.91
for each Defendant. In light of the purpose of prejudgment interest – to make the
plaintiff whole – and in the absence of a compelling argument to the contrary, the
court will exercise its discretion in favor of an award of prejudgment interest.
The judgment will also provide for Plaintiff’s ability to seek costs and
attorneys’ fees, to be awarded in accordance with the law and without prejudice to
Defendants’ ability to challenge any such award.
Although the court would have expected the parties to resolve the issues
raised here without resort to motion practice, it will decline to award sanctions or
attorneys’ fees associated with this motion.
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff’s motion for entry of judgment is
GRANTED IN PART. The court will enter judgment consistent with this order.

s/John Corbett O’Meara
United States District Judge
Date: July 14, 2017
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I hereby certify that a copy of the foregoing document was served upon
counsel of record on this date, July 14, 2017, using the ECF system.

s/William Barkholz
Case Manager

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