Lodestar Method

957 Florida cases classified under this topic, plus 111 listed through its narrower topics · sorted by citation count · see the citation graph · browse and sort

• Toussaint v. McCARTHY
  826 F.2d 901· 9th Cir.· 1987-09-02 ·cited 13×
  A party is entitled to attorney's fees under 42 U.S.C. § 1988 for partial success on appeal, but the award must be reduced to reflect the limited extent of that success.
• Mayson v. Pierce
  806 F.2d 1556· 11th Cir.· 1987-01-06 ·cited 13×
  The court affirmed the district court's determination that $75 per hour was a reasonable rate for attorney's fees in a Title VII case, and that fees for work on a related criminal proceeding were not recoverable under Title VII.
• Silva v. Miller
  547 F. Supp. 2d 1299· S.D. Fla.· 2008-04-07 ·cited 12×
  The court held that it must review all Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) settlements, including attorney's fees, to ensure they are fair and reasonable, even if the plaintiff recovers all wages owed.
• Smith v. Sch. Bd. OF Palm Beach Cnty.
  981 So. 2d 6· Fla. 4th DCA· 2007-11-21 ·cited 12×
  Jerry Smith appealed a trial court's determination of attorney's fees and costs in his § 1983 civil rights action against the School Board of Palm Beach County. The appellate court affirmed the reasonable number of hours and rejection of a lodestar multiplier, but reversed the ho
• Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. v. David A. Reddick & James A. Stokes
  954 So. 2d 723· Fla. 1st DCA· 2007-04-26 ·cited 12×
  Winn-Dixie appeals a trial court's award of attorney's fees and costs in an employment discrimination case brought under the Florida Civil Rights Act (FCRA). The court holds that the FCRA, which requires conformity with federal Title VII law, prohibits contingency fee multipliers
• George v. GTE Directories Corp.
  114 F. Supp. 2d 1281· M.D. Fla.· 2000-08-28 ·cited 12×
  The court granted in part and denied in part the plaintiff's motion for attorneys' fees and costs, granted the motion for prejudgment interest, and granted the defendant's motion for an extension of time.
• Solid Waste Auth. of Palm Beach Cnty. v. Parker
  622 So. 2d 1010· Fla. 4th DCA· 1993-05-19 ·cited 12×
  The Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County appeals an attorney's fee award of $1,784,750 in an eminent domain proceeding, contending the trial court erred by including contingency risk factors in calculating the fee. The appellate court reverses, holding that under Florida la
• State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Cedolia
  571 So. 2d 1386· Fla. 4th DCA· 1990-12-28 ·cited 12×
  The court held that the trial court erred in awarding attorney's fees with a multiplier without sufficient evidentiary support and that the preparation of the judgment order was not reversible error. The court also clarified that a declaratory judgment for coverage constitutes a
• Ne. Women's Ctr. v. McMONAGLE
  889 F.2d 466· 3d Cir.· 1989-11-09 ·cited 12×
  The court held that a proportionality rule does not apply to attorneys' fees awards under the civil RICO statute, and that the district court did not abuse its discretion in calculating the fee award.
• Gilbert v. The City OF Little Rock
  867 F.2d 1063· 8th Cir.· 1989-01-27 ·cited 12×
  The court held that the district court did not err in refusing to award backpay based on a speculative claim of earlier promotion and affirmed the attorney fee award as modified to reflect only enhancement for the risk of loss.
• Jackson v. Ill. Prisoner Review Bd.
  856 F.2d 890· 7th Cir.· 1988-09-02 ·cited 12×
  The court held that fees for an unsuccessful, unrelated ex post facto claim are not compensable under 42 U.S.C. § 1988, and that a fee award must be reduced to reflect partial success on a related claim.
• In re Burlington Northern
  810 F.2d 601· 7th Cir.· 1986-10-02 ·cited 12×
  The court affirmed the denial of multipliers for exceptional success and risk, and the denial of interest from the decree date, but reversed the order to pay fees directly to individual attorneys and paralegals.
• Crumbaker v. Merit Sys. Prot. Bd.
  781 F.2d 191· Fed. Cir.· 1986-01-08 ·cited 12×
  The court held that the Board erred in reducing the billing rate for travel time and in failing to adequately consider adjustments to the lodestar for delay in payment and the contingency nature of the fee.
• Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community and Edith Crooks v. City OF Prior Lake
  771 F.2d 1153· 8th Cir.· 1985-08-30 ·cited 12×
  The court held that the annexation of Reservation land was valid under state and federal law, entitling Reservation residents to municipal services and voting rights. The court also modified the attorney fee award, reducing the hourly rate used for calculation.
• Fed. Trade Comm'n v. Legion Media, LLC
  2008 WL 276026· M.D. Fla.· 2025-04-02 ·cited 11×
  The court recommended granting the Receiver's request for attorney's fees but denying reimbursement for expenses due to a lack of supporting receipts.
• Allapattah Servs., Inc. v. Exxon Corp.
  454 F. Supp. 2d 1185· S.D. Fla.· 2006-07-06 ·cited 11×
  The court awarded Class Counsel 31 1/3% of the settlement fund for attorneys' fees and 1.3% for incentive awards to Class Representatives, based on the case's complexity, duration, and benefits conferred.
• Gen. Motors Acceptance Corp. v. Laesser
  791 So. 2d 517· Fla. 4th DCA· 2001-07-18 ·cited 11×
  A trial court's award of appellate attorney's fees to a prevailing defendant under Florida Statutes section 501.2105 is reviewed for abuse of discretion using the lodestar method, and where competent substantial evidence supports the trial court's findings regarding reasonable ho
• Hosseini v. Mirkamal Afsah Hosseini
  564 So. 2d 548· Fla. 1st DCA· 1990-07-10 ·cited 11×
  In this divorce modification appeal, the court reversed the trial court's denial of the former wife's request to increase child support despite finding the former husband experienced a substantial increase in wealth from $50,000 to $700,000 in net worth. The court held that when
• Tobias J. Cotter v. Bowen
  879 F.2d 359· 8th Cir.· 1989-07-12 ·cited 11×
  The court held that the district court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to apply a multiplier to enhance the attorney's fee award under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b)(1), finding the lodestar calculation adequately compensated counsel.
• Shlachtman v. Mitrani
  508 So. 2d 494· Fla. 3d DCA· 1987-06-09 ·cited 11×
  A plaintiff who prevailed in a specific performance action appealed a trial court's reduction of his claimed attorney's fees and costs. The Third District Court of Appeal held that the "lodestar" approach from Florida Patient's Compensation Fund v. Rowe applies only to statutory
• Vaughns v. Bd. OF Educ. OF Prince George's Cnty.
  770 F.2d 1244· 4th Cir.· 1985-08-22 ·cited 11×·via Lodestar Fee
  The court held that the district judge did not abuse his discretion in awarding an enhancement for the contingency nature of representation, as exceptional circumstances justified it.
• Spanakos v. Hawk Sys., Inc.
  362 So. 3d 226· Fla. 4th DCA· 2023-04-19 ·cited 10×
  The appellate court affirmed a trial court's decision awarding over $1.2 million in attorney's fees and costs to a law firm. The fees were awarded under Florida's offer of judgment statute after the plaintiff, Mark Spanakos, rejected a settlement proposal and subsequently lost hi
• Citizens Prop. Ins. Corp. v. Laguerre
  259 So. 3d 169· Fla. 3d DCA· 2018-08-22 ·cited 10×
  A trial court does not abuse its discretion in awarding a contingency fee multiplier when the award is supported by competent, substantial evidence under the Rowe and Quanstrom factors, and contingency fee multipliers are not limited to rare and exceptional circumstances. The rel
• Dieter Nagl v. Monika Navarro
  187 So. 3d 359· Fla. 4th DCA· 2016-03-16 ·cited 10×
  The court held that attorney's fee awards must contain express findings regarding the reasonableness of hours expended and the hourly rate, and that the trial court failed to make such findings or determine entitlement under the correct statute.
• Harbaugh v. Greslin
  365 F. Supp. 2d 1274· S.D. Fla.· 2005-04-12 ·cited 10×
  Plaintiff Harbaugh sued defendants for fraud and breach of contract arising from a 1997 agreement to recruit and lead a negotiation team for the sale or license of GVPP, a silicon chip technology. The jury found for defendants on the fraud claim but awarded Harbaugh $2 million on
• Hartleb v. State
  711 So. 2d 228· Fla. 4th DCA· 1998-05-27 ·cited 10×
  The Fourth District affirmed a trial court's award of attorney's fees and costs, rejecting the appellant's arguments that the award should have been apportioned among different litigation stages and that interest should have been awarded on the fees. The court found the trial cou
• Raffaella Y. Nanetti v. Univ. OF Ill. AT Chicago
  944 F.2d 1416· 7th Cir.· 1991-10-08 ·cited 10×
  The court held that reducing lead counsel's hourly rate without specific justification was an abuse of discretion, and that applying two separate reductions to the fees-on-fees award for the same reason constituted an improper double reduction.
• Knowlton Merritt v. MacKey
  932 F.2d 1317· 9th Cir.· 1991-05-08 ·cited 10×·via Lodestar Fee Calculation
  The court held that the prior panel's decision on qualified immunity was the law of the case, the damages awarded were not clearly erroneous, and Mackey was liable for attorney's fees under § 1988 due to joint action with a state official, but the multiplier for attorney's fees w
• BEE v. Greaves
  910 F.2d 686· 10th Cir.· 1990-08-02 ·cited 10×
  The court affirmed the denial of qualified immunity, finding the law regarding involuntary medication of pretrial detainees was clearly established. It affirmed in part and reversed in part the attorney fee award, remanding for reevaluation of fees for successful prior appeals.
• Park Lane Condo. Ass'n, Inc. v. Corazon DePADUA
  558 So. 2d 85· Fla. 1st DCA· 1990-02-28 ·cited 10×
  The respondent has standing to challenge the Comptroller's decision because the McFadden Act's antibranching rule was intended to protect competitors of national banks, not solely state banks.
• United States Football League v. Nat'l Football League
  887 F.2d 408· 2d Cir.· 1989-10-10 ·cited 10×
  The court held that the USFL was entitled to attorney's fees under the Clayton Act despite nominal damages, and that paralegal fees are compensable at market rates.
• Paul v. Reynaldo D. Graulty in Reorganization for WPMK Corp.
  886 F.2d 268· 9th Cir.· 1989-09-27 ·cited 10×
  The court held that the district court misconstrued the common fund doctrine by awarding an unreasonably low fee for creating the fund.
• Forest Henry Shipes v. Trinity Indus., Inc.
  883 F.2d 339· 5th Cir.· 1989-08-31 ·cited 10×·via Lodestar Calculation
• In re Application to Adjudge Trinity Indus. v. Trinity Indus., Inc.
  876 F.2d 1485· 11th Cir.· 1989-07-11 ·cited 10×
  The court held that the OSHA inspection warrants were validly issued based on probable cause under the administrative plan exception and that the contempt findings and sanctions against Mosher and Trinity were not an abuse of discretion.
• In re Manoa Fin. Co., Inc. v. Klenske
  853 F.2d 687· 9th Cir.· 1988-08-02 ·cited 10×
  Fee awards under § 330 of the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1978 may be enhanced beyond the lodestar (hourly rate times hours worked) only in exceptional circumstances, requiring specific evidence that the lodestar does not fairly compensate for the work done.
• Lange v. Penn Mut. Life Ins. Co.
  843 F.2d 1175· 9th Cir.· 1988-03-30 ·cited 10×
  The court held that Arizona law applied to the bad faith claim, affirmed the bad faith damages, reversed the punitive damages award due to insufficient evidence of an 'evil mind,' and reduced the attorney fee award to the lodestar amount.
• Curtis v. Bill Hanna Ford, Inc.
  822 F.2d 549· 5th Cir.· 1987-07-24 ·cited 10×
  The court held that a district court may sua sponte reduce an unopposed attorney fee request to a reasonable amount and is not required to hold an evidentiary hearing if none is requested, but erred in reducing the lead counsel's hourly rate and disallowing EEOC hearing time.
• Brewster v. Dukakis
  786 F.2d 16· 1st Cir.· 1986-03-14 ·cited 10×
  The court held that the district court properly rejected defendants' proposed stricter standard for post-judgment monitoring fees but should have allowed limited discovery regarding potential dual compensation for plaintiffs' counsel.
• Cashman v. Allied Prods. Corp.
  761 F.2d 1250· 8th Cir.· 1985-05-15 ·cited 10×
  The court held that the jury's award of lost profits was supported by sufficient evidence and that the district court properly admitted expert testimony regarding those profits. The court also affirmed the denial of prejudgment interest and lost officers' salaries.
• Riddell v. The Nat'l Democratic Party
  712 F.2d 165· 5th Cir.· 1983-08-15 ·cited 10×
  The court held that the district court did not abuse its discretion in imposing joint and several liability or in calculating the lodestar for attorneys' fees, but did err by omitting consideration of travel time and time spent preparing the fee application.
• Walker v. Robbins Hose Co. NO. 1, Inc.
  622 F.2d 692· 3d Cir.· 1980-05-23 ·cited 10×
  The district court did not abuse its discretion in awarding attorneys fees for prevailing claims and denying expert witness fees.
• Taylor v. Lutz
  134 So. 3d 1146· Fla. 1st DCA· 2014-04-07 ·cited 9×
  The court held that the parties' Marital Settlement Agreement, not the statute, controls the termination of alimony upon remarriage, and that the trial court erred by not calculating a lodestar amount for attorney's fees.
• Josephthal Lyon & Ross, Inc. v. Durham
  734 So. 2d 487· Fla. 5th DCA· 1999-05-14 ·cited 9×
  The court held that while the plaintiff was entitled to attorney's fees, the amount awarded by the trial court improperly exceeded the fee agreement between the plaintiff and her attorney.
• Fla. Birth-Related Neurological Injury Comp. Ass'n v. Carreras
  633 So. 2d 1103· Fla. 3d DCA· 1994-02-15 ·cited 9×
  NICA appeals from an attorney's fee award of $90,000 in a birth-related neurological injury compensation case. The court reverses and remands, finding multiple errors in the fee calculation including improper consideration of a contingency multiplier, inclusion of fees for litiga
• Okla. Aerotronics, Inc. v. United States
  943 F.2d 1344· D.C. Cir.· 1991-09-13 ·cited 9×
  The court held that an extraordinary delay in awarding attorney fees can be a 'special factor' justifying an increase in the fee award under the Equal Access to Justice Act.
• Tufaro v. Willie
  756 F. Supp. 556· S.D. Fla.· 1991-01-31 ·cited 9×
  The court granted the defendants' motion for attorney's fees and costs, awarding $82,500 in fees and $35,875.85 in costs, totaling $118,375.88.
• Cordero v. De Jesus-Mendez
  922 F.2d 11· 1st Cir.· 1990-12-18 ·cited 9×
  Postjudgment interest accrues from the date of the judgment entered after a retrial ordered due to insufficient evidence, not from the date of the original vacated judgment.
• Columbus Mills, Inc. v. Doy L. Freeland
  918 F.2d 1575· 11th Cir.· 1990-12-14 ·cited 9×
  The court held that the district court did not err in denying a jury trial on the issue of attorneys' fees and that the finding of Freeland's dissent being arbitrary and vexatious was not clearly erroneous.
• Sweeney v. Athens Reg'l Med. Ctr.
  917 F.2d 1560· 11th Cir.· 1990-11-30 ·cited 9×·via Lodestar Calculation
  The court held that the district court correctly interpreted and reformed the April 22, 1988 fee agreement, but erred in its application of the agreement regarding the documentation of hours spent by attorneys.
• von Clark v. Butler
  916 F.2d 255· 5th Cir.· 1990-11-01 ·cited 9×
  The court affirmed the district court's attorney fee award, finding no abuse of discretion in the determination of the hourly rate or the number of hours compensated.