Pontarelli v. Stone, Civ. A. No. 86-0370-T.

• Decision Date: 21 January 1992
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 86-0370-T.
• Citation: 781 F. Supp. 114
• Parties: Trooper Alvin T. PONTARELLI, et al. v. Walter E. STONE, et al.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Rhode Island

781 F. Supp. 114

Trooper Alvin T. PONTARELLI, et al. v. Walter E. STONE, et al.

Civ. A. No. 86-0370-T.

United States District Court, D. Rhode Island.

January 16, 1992.

As Corrected January 21, 1992.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Ina P. Schiff, Providence, R.I., Joseph J. Levin, Jr., Carla Calobrisi, Adams, McCullough & Beard, Washington, D.C., for plaintiffs.

Max Wistow, Wistow & Barylick, Inc., Thomas J. McAndrew, Providence, R.I., for defendants Stone & Benjamin.

Joseph V. Cavanagh, Jr., Blish & Cavanagh, Providence, R.I., for defendant Reynolds.

James E. O'Neil, Atty. Gen., Robert E. Feder, Asst. Atty. Gen., Providence, R.I., for defendants Atty. Gen. Violet and State of R.I.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

TORRES, District Judge.

This case is before the Court on cross motions for awards of attorneys' fees and costs pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1988. The principal issues presented are whether the plaintiffs are "prevailing" parties, whether they have presented documentation sufficient to support their requests and whether the claims unsuccessfully asserted against some of the defendants can be characterized as frivolous or brought in bad faith.

BACKGROUND

I. Travel of the Case

The procedural history of this case is lengthy and complex. It has been chronicled in previously reported decisions dealing with other phases of this litigation.¹ However, a brief summary is required to place the instant motions in context.

This litigation was initiated by an eight count complaint filed on behalf of Rhode Island State Police Lodge 25, FOP (the "Lodge"), three of its male officers and two of its female members, Linda Bailey and Mary Nunes. Trooper Nunes became a member of the Rhode Island State Police after successfully completing the 1985-1986 Training Academy for new recruits. The other individual plaintiffs became members before that time. The defendants were Colonel Walter E. Stone and Major Lionel Benjamin, the superintendent and executive officer, respectively, of the Rhode Island State Police; Lieutenant Walter T. Reynolds, the officer charged with responsibility for conducting the 1985-1986 Training Academy; Arlene Violet, the Attorney General of the State of Rhode Island during the time the 1985-1986 Training Academy was being conducted and the State of Rhode Island.

Counts I and II were directed at Stone, Benjamin and the State. They alleged a continuing practice of sex discrimination in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e et seq., respectively, during an unspecified period of time prior to the 1985-1986 Training Academy. Counts III and IV contained similar allegations against all five defendants and relate to the manner in which the Training Academy was conducted. Counts V and VI charged sex discrimination and retaliation by Stone, Benjamin, Reynolds and the State during the period between the conclusion of the Training Academy and the filing of the complaint. Like the preceding counts, they were based on § 1983 and Title VII, respectively.

Counts VII and VIII were also directed at Stone, Benjamin, Reynolds and the State. Count VII alleged violations of the plaintiffs' organizational and collective bargaining rights under the Rhode Island Labor Relations Act, R.I.Gen.Laws §§ 28-7-1 et seq. Count VIII consisted of several state tort law claims asserted by Nunes for assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress and invasion of privacy both during and after the 1985-1986 Training Academy.

On October 16, 1986, Bailey voluntarily dismissed her claims with prejudice. On August 25, 1988, this Court granted Violet's motion for judgment on the pleadings with respect to Counts III and IV thereby eliminating her from the case.

Subsequently, Nunes' claims and those of the remaining plaintiffs were severed for purposes of trial, and Nunes' claims were bifurcated as to liability and damages because it appeared that a considerable amount of medical and/or psychiatric evidence would be required in connection with her claim for damages. The liability portion of Nunes' case that consisted of claims requiring a jury trial (i.e., Counts III, V and VIII) was tried in September and October of 1988. The jury found Reynolds liable under Count III (sex discrimination/harassment during the Training Academy) and found Stone, Benjamin and the State liable under both Count V (sex discrimination/harassment for the period after the Training Academy) and the invasion of privacy claim contained in Count VIII. The jury also found in favor of Reynolds on Counts V and VIII and in favor of Stone, Benjamin and the State on both Count III and the assault and battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress claims contained in Count VIII.

The day after that verdict was returned all of the remaining plaintiffs, except Nunes, dismissed their claims with prejudice. In exchange, the defendants released those plaintiffs from any claims arising out of the suit other than claims for attorneys' fees pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1988.

The damages portion of Nunes' case then proceeded to trial and resulted in a jury verdict awarding only nominal damages against Reynolds and the State, but both nominal and punitive damages against Stone and Benjamin in the amounts of $75,000.00 and $50,000.00, respectively. Subsequently, this Court, having previously reserved ruling on the defendants' motions for directed verdicts, granted Reynolds' motion with respect to Count III and the motions by Stone, Benjamin and the State with respect to Count VIII. Similar motions by Stone, Benjamin and the State were denied with regard to Count V. At the same time, the Court also entered judgment for the defendants on Counts I and II since the only plaintiffs with standing to prosecute those counts had dismissed their claims with prejudice.² Finally, the Court entered judgment for the defendants on Counts IV and VI (the Title VII claims) and denied plaintiffs' requests for declaratory and injunctive relief.

The final chapter of the trial phase of this case was written on December 22, 1988, when this Court granted a motion by Stone and Benjamin for a new trial unless Nunes consented to a remittitur of a portion of the punitive damages awarded. Nunes consented to the remittitur, and the net result was entry of a final judgment in favor of all defendants on Counts I-IV and VI-VIII. With respect to Count V, final judgment was entered for Reynolds and Violet but in favor of Nunes against Stone, Benjamin and the State for nominal damages in the amount of $2.00 each and for punitive damages against Stone and Benjamin in the amounts of $10,000.00 and $5,000.00, respectively. The "plaintiffs" and defendants all appealed, and at the request of the parties, this Court deferred the lengthy process of making attorneys' fee awards until those appeals were resolved thereby establishing with finality which parties had "prevailed."

The First Circuit affirmed this Court's judgment with one modification. Based on the Supreme Court's intervening decision in Will v. Michigan Department of State Police, 491 U.S. 58, 109 S.Ct. 2304, 105 L.Ed.2d 45 (1989), it dismissed the claims against the State on the ground that the State is not a "person" subject to suit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. In all other respects, the judgment was affirmed. Pontarelli v. Stone, 930 F.2d 104, 113 (1st Cir.1991).

II. Attorneys' Fees Petitions

As soon as the judgment became "final," the battle over attorneys' fees and costs began in earnest. Plaintiffs, through their chief counsel, Ina P. Schiff, moved, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1988, for an award of $511,951.00 in attorneys' fees and $203,268.28 in costs. However, no supporting documentation was submitted until nearly two months after the due date fixed by the Court. Most of the attorneys' fees sought by the plaintiffs are attributable to time claimed to have been devoted to the case by Ms. Schiff. The remainder is attributable to hours logged by attorneys in a North Carolina law firm who served as trial counsel and a Rhode Island attorney who was co-counsel with Ms. Schiff at the inception of the case but withdrew shortly thereafter.

Violet and Reynolds petitioned for fees in the amounts of $54,168.50 and $198,127.46, respectively. Since the State paid Reynolds' legal expenses, it joined in his request. However, the State does not seek any fees for its own defense because it candidly acknowledges that, although it was represented by counsel at all stages, its interests were served by counsel for the other defendants who wielded the laboring oars.

The volume of documents involved, the number of issues raised and the contentiousness of the parties required this Court to conduct hearings on six different dates. The time span was further lengthened when the proceedings were reopened to permit the defendants to present newly discovered evidence with respect to allegations that Ms. Schiff had falsified an affidavit regarding the fees she customarily charged other clients and that certain expenses she claimed were unrelated to this case.

DISCUSSION

I. Plaintiffs' Entitlement to Attorneys' Fees

A. The Prevailing Party Requirement

The general rule is that a "prevailing" party ordinarily is entitled to recover attorneys' fees pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1988 unless "special circumstances would render such an award unjust." Blanchard v. Bergeron, 489 U.S. 87, 89 n. 1, 109 S.Ct. 939, 942 n. 1, 103 L.Ed.2d 67 (1989) (citing Newman v. Piggie Park Enterprises, Inc., 390 U.S. 400, 402, 88 S.Ct. 964, 966, 19 L.Ed.2d 1263 (1968)).³ Therefore, in passing on a petition for attorneys' fees, the Court must begin by determining whether the petitioner "prevailed."

Plaintiffs are said to "prevail" when they "succeed on any significant issue in litigation which achieves some of the benefit they sought in bringing the suit." Hensley v. Eckerhart, 461 U.S. 424, 433, 103 S.Ct. 1933, 1939, 76 L.Ed.2d 40 (1983) (quoting ...