Trustees of the Drywall Tapers and Pointers Local Union No. 1974 Benefit Funds…
Trustees of the Drywall Tapers and Pointers Local Union No. 1974 Benefit Funds v. Excellence Drywall, LLC
- Lorna Schofield
- 1:19-cv-07273
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Trustees of the Drywall Tapers v. Excellence Drywall, Judge Schofield awarded $3,854 in fees and costs, plus post-judgment interest, after a default judgment.
The plaintiffs, Trustees of the Drywall Tapers and Pointers Local Union No. 1974 Benefit Funds and the other plaintiffs identified in the case, received $3,854 in attorneys’ fees and costs plus post-judgment interest. Excellence Drywall, LLC was ordered to pay those amounts.
What happened
Trustees of the Drywall Tapers and Pointers Local Union No. 1974 Benefit Funds and other plaintiffs had already obtained a default judgment against Excellence Drywall, LLC. The court reserved the amounts of liquidated damages, attorneys’ fees, and costs for a later review.
Magistrate Judge Kevin Fox recommended awarding the plaintiffs $3,225 in reasonable attorneys’ fees and $629 in costs and disbursements, for a total of $3,854. The defendant was mailed the recommendation, but no timely objections were filed.
Judge Lorna G. Schofield found no clear error, adopted the recommendation as modified, and awarded the plaintiffs $3,854 plus post-judgment interest at the statutory rate. The clerk was asked to close the case.
The detailed version
- Trustees of the Drywall Tapers and Pointers Local Union No. 1974 Benefit Funds… · No. 1:19-cv-07273
- Lorna Schofield
- Sept. 21, 2020
Background
A November 26, 2019 default judgment had awarded judgment to the plaintiffs against Excellence Drywall, LLC, with the amounts of liquidated damages, attorneys’ fees, court costs, and disbursements to be determined through a later review of evidence. The plaintiffs were directed to provide evidentiary support for the attorneys’ fees and costs they sought.
Magistrate Judge’s Recommendation
On August 14, 2020, Magistrate Judge Kevin Fox issued a Report and Recommendation. It recommended an award of $3,854, consisting of $3,225 in reasonable attorneys’ fees and $629 in costs and disbursements. The plaintiffs mailed a copy of the recommendation to the defendant on September 1, 2020. No timely objections were filed.
Because there were no timely objections, Judge Schofield reviewed the recommendation for clear error on the face of the record. The court found no clear error regarding the recommended attorneys’ fees, costs, and disbursements.
Ruling
Judge Lorna G. Schofield ordered that the Report and Recommendation be adopted as modified. The plaintiffs were awarded $3,854—$3,225 in reasonable attorneys’ fees and $629 in costs and disbursements—plus post-judgment interest calculated at the statutory rate under 28 U.S.C. § 1961. The opinion states that this interest was awarded even though it had not been explicitly requested. The clerk was asked to close the case.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.