Fair Housing Center of Washington v. Breier-Scheetz Properties, LLC et al

Filing 72

MINUTE ORDER granting in part and denying in part Plaintiff's 62 Motion for Attorney Fees and Costs. Authorized by Judge Thomas S. Zilly. (SWT)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT SEATTLE

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FAIR HOUSING CENTER OF
WASHINGTON,
Plaintiff,

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C16-922 TSZ
v.
MINUTE ORDER
BREIER-SCHEETZ PROPERTIES,
LLC,

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Defendant.

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The following Minute Order is made by direction of the Court, the Honorable
Thomas S. Zilly, United States District Judge:
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(1)
THIS MATTER comes before the Court upon Plaintiff Fair Housing Center
of Washington’s (“Plaintiff”) Motion for Attorney’s Fees and Costs, docket no. 62 (the
“Motion”), to which no opposition was filed. Having reviewed the Motion and related
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papers, the Motion is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part as follows.
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(2)
The prevailing party in a civil rights suit is entitled to an award of
reasonable attorney’s fees and costs under the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3613(c)(2).
The prevailing party is also entitled to reasonable fees and costs under the Washington
Law Against Discrimination (WLAD), RCW 49.60.030(2). The Court finds that Plaintiff
was the prevailing party in this action brought under the Fair Housing Act, WLAD, and
the Seattle Municipal Code. In determining the reasonableness of attorney’s fees, courts
employ the lodestar approach. See Hensley v. Eckerhart, 461 U.S. 424, 433–34 (1983).
Under the lodestar approach, the Court multiplies the number of hours reasonably spent
by a reasonable hourly rate. See id. Under the WLAD, this resulting figure may then be
adjusted either up or down to account for the contingent nature of success and the quality
of work performed. See Chuong Van Pham v. Seattle City Light, 159 Wn.2d 527, 541,

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MINUTE ORDER - 1

1 151 P.3d 976 (2007). Here, the Court finds that the following hourly rates for Plaintiff’s
attorneys and staff to be reasonable: Jesse Wing ($500), Angela Galloway ($325), and
2 Sam Kramer ($275). See Declaration of Jesse Wing in Support of Plaintiff’s Motion for
Attorney’s Fees and Costs, docket no. 63 (“Wing Decl.”), at 1–6. Concerning the
3 number of hours spent by Plaintiff’s counsel, the Court declines to grant the $650 in fees
incurred by Plaintiff in preparing and filing its untimely Supplemental Trial Brief on
4 Standards for Punitive Damages Under the Fair Housing Act, docket no. 59. See Exhibit
1 to Wing. Decl., at 16 (1.3 hours spent by Mr. Wing at $500 per hour). The time
5 incurred in preparing this brief is unreasonable. The Court finds the remaining time spent
by Plaintiff in litigating this matter, including the 25% upward adjustment to the lodestar
6 amount requested by Plaintiff, to be reasonable. The Court therefore grants Plaintiff’s
request for the remaining fees of $141,460, calculated by multiplying the number of
7 hours expended by the corresponding hourly rate (189.4 hours spent by Mr. Wing at $500
per hour; 136.6 hours spent by Ms. Galloway at $325 per hour; and 8.6 hours spent by
8 Mr. Kramer at $275 per hour), plus a 25% upward adjustment to the lodestar amount, for
a total fee award of $176,825. The Court also grants Plaintiff’s request for $7,916.01 in
9 costs, which the Court finds reasonable, for a total award of $184,741.01.
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(3)
record.

The Clerk is directed to send a copy of this Minute Order to all counsel of

Dated this 17th day of November, 2017.

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William M. McCool
Clerk

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s/Karen Dews
Deputy Clerk

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MINUTE ORDER - 2