U.S. Bank National Association v. Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada

Filing 152

ORDER granting supplemental request for attorney fees in the amount of $838,810.23. The clerk is directed to enter judgment in the amount of $1,842,538.99 in favor of plaintiff. Signed by District Judge William M. Conley on 5/2/2017. (arw)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN
U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION,
Plaintiff,
v.
SUN LIFE ASSURANCE COMPANY OF
CANADA,

ORDER
14-cv-562-wmc

Defendant.
As a result of a finding of defendant’s bad faith, the court previously awarded
plaintiff attorney’s fees and costs in the amount of $1,003,728.76. (12/23/16 Op. &
Order (dkt. #141).) That award compensated plaintiff for fees and costs incurred in this
matter through December 31, 2015. Plaintiff has now filed a supplemental brief and
supporting materials seeking additional attorney’s fees and costs incurred since January 1,
2016, in the amount of $838,810.23. (Pl.’s Br. (dkt. #144); Failla Decl. (dkt. #145);
Wilson Decl. (dkt. #146).)
Defendant Sun Life opposes plaintiff’s motion largely on the same grounds
advanced in its unsuccessful opposition to plaintiff’s first motion for attorney’s fees.
More specifically, defendant argues that plaintiff’s fee request is unreasonable because of
the amount of time plaintiff spent on the appeal, including participation in mediation
and preparation of its fee petitions. As the court explained in its earlier opinion, the best
measure of whether fees are reasonable is whether they were actually incurred and paid.
(12/23/16 Op. & Order (dkt. #141) 3-6.) See Medcom Holding Co. v. Baxter Travenol Labs,
200 F.3d 518, 521 (7th Cir. 1999) (best evidence of fees is the amount that commercial
parties incurred and paid knowing that they had to cover the outlays themselves).

Moreover, for the court to give defendant’s argument any weight, it would have had to
provide the timesheets and invoices of its own counsel. Since defendant failed to do even
this (unlike its original challenge), a claim that plaintiff’s counsel’s time was unreasonable
rings particularly hollow.
Second, defendant regurgitates its argument that the court should not award fees
for bringing and pursuing a bad faith claim. (Def.’s Opp’n (dkt. #151) 3-4.) The court
sees no basis for reconsidering its prior decision, rejecting this argument (12/23/16 Op. &
Order (dkt. #141) 2-3), though defendant certainly preserves that argument for any
further appeal.

ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that:
1) Plaintiff U.S. Bank National Association supplemental request for
attorney’s fees is GRANTED.
2) The clerk of court is directed to enter judgment in the amount of
$1,842,538.99 in favor of plaintiff on plaintiff’s bad faith claim and close
this case.
Entered this 2nd day of May, 2017.
BY THE COURT:

/s/
__________________________________
WILLIAM M. CONLEY
District Judge

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