Doe v. Chao
| Decision Date | 10 November 2004 |
| Docket Number | No. CIV.A.2:97 CV 43.,CIV.A.2:97 CV 43. |
| Citation | 346 F.Supp.2d 840 |
| Parties | Robert DOE, et al., Plaintiffs, v. Elaine L. CHAO, Secretary of Labor, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Western District of Virginia |
Jerry Walker Kilgore, Sands Anderson Marks & Miller, Richmond, VA, Joseph A. Siciliano, Jr., Robrt J. Mottern, Mottern Fisher & Goldman, Atlanta, GA, Joesph E. Wolfe, Terry Gene Kilgore, Wolfe Williams & Rutherford, Norton, VA, for plaintiffs.
John F. Corcoran, Julie C. Dudley, U.S. Attorneys Office, Roanoke, VA, for defendant.
This case is before the court on plaintiffs' motion pursuant to the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C.A. § 552a(g)(4)(B), and the Equal Access to Justice Act, 28 U.S.C.A. § 2412(b), seeking attorneys' fees for the prosecution of certain issues in their suit against the United States Department of Labor, ("the Department"), for its practice of listing social security numbers on black lung multi-captioned hearing notices.
Plaintiffs in this action are claimants who filed for benefits under the Department's black lung program. The record shows that Robert Doe filed suit against the Secretary of Labor, ("the Secretary"), on February 13, 1997, seeking to enjoin the Department's practice of listing claimants' social security numbers on black lung multi-captioned hearing notices. On February 18 and 19, 1997, the Secretary entered into an agreement stating that the Department would no longer disseminate social security numbers on black lung hearing notices. The court approved and signed the agreement on February 20, 1997. Later that day, six other Doe plaintiffs (Buck, Charles, Dick, Joe, Otis and Thomas) initiated six additional lawsuits in the Western District of Virginia seeking equitable relief and damages. These cases were subsequently consolidated with Robert Doe's lawsuit on June 4, 1997. Finally, in August 1997, the court granted Tays Doe leave to intervene in the suit.
In January 1998, plaintiffs filed a Motion to Show Cause seeking to hold the Secretary in contempt of court for violating the court order of February 20, 1997. The plaintiffs further filed notice of their intent to depose several administrative law judges, ("ALJ"), whose actions formed the basis of plaintiffs' contempt motion. In an order issued March 17, 1998, the court granted in part, denied in part, defendant's motion to stay discovery, defendant's motion to stay/cancel the Show Cause hearing and defendant's motion to stay the deposition of ALJ Sutton. The court stayed all other discovery pending its ruling on cross-motions for summary judgment. Finally, the court denied plaintiffs' motion to hold the Secretary in default.
On May 6, 1998, the court denied plaintiffs' motion to hold the Secretary in contempt after concluding she had substantially complied with its decree to stop publishing social security numbers on multi-captioned hearing notices. On June 1, 1998, the court denied plaintiffs' motion to reconsider contempt sanctions.
During the spring of 1999, the parties' cross-motions for summary judgment and plaintiffs' Motion to Certify the Litigation as a Class Action were referred to the Magistrate Judge. By Report and Recommendation dated October 29, 1999, the Magistrate recommended that plaintiffs' motions be denied. The Magistrate further recommended that summary judgment be granted in favor of the Secretary on all of the claims except for the claim of Buck Doe.
On December 8, 1999, the court referred Plaintiffs' Motion to Amend Complaint and File Affidavits in Support of Damages to the Magistrate Judge. By Report and Recommendation dated May 24, 2000, the Magistrate recommended that plaintiffs' motion be denied.
On July 24, 2000, the court denied the plaintiffs' motion for class certification and entered summary judgment for the Secretary on the claims of all plaintiffs except for the claim of Buck Doe. The court granted summary judgment in Buck Doe's favor and awarded $1,000.00 in damages. Plaintiffs appealed the ruling granting summary judgment to the Secretary to the Fourth Circuit and the Secretary cross-appealed the court's award of summary judgment to Buck Doe. In the fall of 2000, while the appeals were still pending, the plaintiffs filed petitions for attorneys' fees under 28 U.S.C.A. § 2412(b) and 5 U.S.C.A. § 552a(g)(4), which the Secretary opposed.
The Fourth Circuit entered judgment on September 20, 2002, affirming the court's grant of summary judgment in favor of the Secretary and reversing the court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Buck Doe. The Court denied rehearing on November 15, and, when the 90-day period for seeking certiorari passed on February 13, 2003, the judgment against all plaintiffs other than Buck Doe became final. Buck Doe petitioned for a writ of certiorari, which the Supreme Court granted. The Supreme Court affirmed the Fourth Circuit's ruling in favor of the Secretary on February 24, 2004. Pursuant to remand from the Supreme Court, this court entered judgment against Buck Doe on his claim for monetary damages on April 27, 2004. The court now must decide the plaintiffs' claims for attorneys' fees.
Attorneys' fees and costs may be awarded against the United States only when, under a particular statute, the government has waived its sovereign immunity. See, e.g., Library of Congress v. Shaw, 478 U.S. 310, 318, 106 S.Ct. 2957, 92 L.Ed.2d 250 (1986) (citations omitted). Furthermore, waivers of sovereign immunity must be narrowly construed. Library of Congress, 478 U.S. at 318, 106 S.Ct. 2957. Plaintiffs' motion for attorneys' fees is based upon provisions contained in the Equal Access to Justice Act, ("EAJA"), and the Privacy Act of 1974. Plaintiffs argue that the EAJA provides for an award of attorneys' fees in this case under 28 U.S.C.A. § 2412(b). In the event that it does not, plaintiffs argue that they are entitled to an award of attorneys' fees pursuant to 5 U.S.C.A. § 552a(g)(4). The Secretary, however, argues that plaintiffs have failed to satisfy the requirements for recovery under § 2412(b). The Secretary further argues that, at most, only one of the plaintiffs has satisfied the requirements of § 552a(g)(4), and, in any event, such an award would be unreasonable.
Plaintiffs first contend that they are entitled to an award of attorneys' fees and costs pursuant to 28 U.S.C.A. § 2412(b),1 commonly known as the Equal Access to Justice Act. Section 2412(b) provides that:
Unless expressly prohibited by statute, a court may award reasonable fees and expenses of attorneys, in addition to the costs which may be awarded pursuant to subsection (a), to the prevailing party in any civil action brought by or against the United States or any agency or any official of the United States acting in his or her official capacity in any court having jurisdiction of such action. The United States shall be liable for such fees and expenses to the same extent that any other party would be liable under the common law or under the terms of any statute which specifically provides for such an award.
28 U.S.C.A. § 2412(b). Thus, § 2412(b) sets forth a two-part test requiring a moving party to show that he is (1) a "prevailing party," and (2) that there is some common law or statutory basis for an award of attorneys' fees. The Secretary has stipulated in its brief that at least Robert Doe qualifies as a "prevailing party" under § 2412(b). However, the Secretary contends that plaintiffs' reliance on the "common-benefit" doctrine in an attempt to satisfy the common law basis for an award of fees under the EAJA on behalf of all plaintiffs is misplaced.2 The court finds that the Secretary has the better side of the argument.
Under the so-called "American Rule," parties are generally responsible for their own attorneys' fees. Alyeska Pipeline Serv. Co. v. Wilderness Soc'y, 421 U.S. 240, 247, 95 S.Ct. 1612, 44 L.Ed.2d 141 (1975). However, under the "common-benefit" doctrine, at common law, and hence, under EAJA, fees may be imposed on a class of individuals not participating in the litigation that received "a substantial benefit" from that litigation and would have had to pay the fees had the members of the class themselves brought the suit. Mills v. Electric Auto-Lite Co., 396 U.S. 375, 393-94, 90 S.Ct. 616, 24 L.Ed.2d 593 (1970). Upon application of the common-benefit doctrine, fees are spread proportionately among the identified beneficiaries. Mills, 396 U.S. at 396-97, 90 S.Ct. 616. The "theory is designed to avoid unjust enrichment of beneficiaries to a lawsuit who are not named plaintiffs." Grace v. Burger, 763 F.2d 457, 460 (D.C.Cir.1985). Toward that end, courts will apply the common-benefit doctrine only when the defendant is an entity that "represents" the benefited class. In order to qualify as a class under the common-benefit doctrine: (1) the classes of beneficiaries must be small in number; (2) easily ascertainable; (3) the benefits must be traceable with some accuracy; and (4) there must be reason for confidence that the costs can indeed be shifted with some exactitude to those benefiting. Alyeska, 421 U.S. at 265 n. 39, 95 S.Ct. 1612.
Traditionally, the common-benefit doctrine has been applied in two types of cases: shareholder derivative suits, see, e.g., Mills, 396 U.S. at 394-395, 90 S.Ct. 616, and suits by union members against unions, see, e.g., Hall v. Cole, 412 U.S. 1, 8-9, 93 S.Ct. 1943, 36 L.Ed.2d 702 (1973). In Mills, the plaintiff was a shareholder who prosecuted a suit against the corporation to vindicate the rights of shareholders. Mills, 396 U.S. at 397, 90 S.Ct. 616. In holding the corporation liable for the plaintiff's fee, the court stated that in shareholder derivative suits courts allow the expenses of the suit to be spread among the...
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Doe v. Chao
...claimants initiated six separate lawsuits seeking equitable relief and money damages under the Privacy Act. See Doe v. Chao, 346 F.Supp.2d 840, 842 (W.D.Va.2004) (Doe IV) (summarizing case history).1 These lawsuits were consolidated with Robert Doe's suit on June 4, 1997, and the seven clai......
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Doe v. Chao
...in the Western District of Virginia, seeking both equitable relief and monetary damages under the Privacy Act. See Doe v. Chao, 346 F.Supp.2d 840, 842-43 (W.D.Va. 2004) (summarizing the case history). On June 4, 1997, these six lawsuits were consolidated with Robert Doe's suit. The seven cl......