Goldstein v. Professional Staff Congress/CUNY

Background

Avraham Goldstein and five other professors sued the Professional Staff Congress/CUNY, the City University of New York, and the City of New York. Their claims challenged compelled association with the union and bargaining unit, as well as deductions of union dues after some plaintiffs resigned. The court had dismissed the first two counts based on Supreme Court First Amendment precedent. The remaining portion of the third count concerned alleged post-resignation deductions.

Before the court ruled on the dismissal motions, Goldstein accepted the City’s offer of judgment under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 68. The judgment resolved Goldstein’s claim against the City concerning improper post-resignation dues deductions and included reasonable attorneys’ fees, expenses, and costs to be determined by the court. The remaining third-count claims were later voluntarily dismissed, and the court entered a final judgment. The opinion states that Goldstein’s appeal of the dismissal of the first two counts remained pending in the Second Circuit.

Goldstein sought fees for work performed by the Fairness Center and attorneys from the National Right to Work Legal Defense & Education Foundation, Inc. He initially sought $36,546.75 in fees and costs, later reducing the request during briefing. The City did not dispute that Goldstein was entitled to a fee award under the offer of judgment, but disputed the amount.

Attorneys’ Fees

The court used the lodestar method, which multiplies the reasonable hours worked by reasonable hourly rates. It accepted the proposed rates for attorneys Milton L. Chappell and William L. Messenger and for paralegal Lindsey Wanner: $650 per hour, $600 per hour, and $150 per hour, respectively. It reduced the requested rates for lead attorney Nathan J. McGrath from $500 to $400 per hour and for Danielle Acker Susanj from $400 to $300 per hour, finding that the claim was straightforward and did not justify the higher rates.

With those adjusted rates and other reductions Goldstein had already accepted, the court calculated a lodestar of $20,970. It then reduced the lodestar by 70% because Goldstein’s success was limited to the dues-deduction claim, while the other two counts were the central claims in the lawsuit and had been dismissed. The court found those unsuccessful claims legally and factually distinct from the successful claim, so it did not award fees for work devoted to them.

The court made another reduction because the billing records did not separate work performed for Goldstein from work performed for the other plaintiffs. It treated Goldstein’s share of the work on the third count as one-sixth and applied an additional 25% reduction. The resulting award was $1,048.50, described by the court as 5% of the $20,970 lodestar.

Costs

The court stated that reasonable out-of-pocket expenses normally charged to paying clients can be recoverable as costs. It awarded routine costs but did not resolve the City’s item-by-item objections. Under Local Rule 54.1, Goldstein was directed to file a bill of costs with the Clerk within 30 days after the final disposition of his Second Circuit appeal. The Clerk would initially decide which costs were taxable, after which either party would have seven days to appeal the Clerk’s cost award to the district court. The court emphasized that only costs connected with Goldstein’s successful claim against the City were compensable.

Disposition

The court granted $1,048.50 in attorneys’ fees, as well as costs, and directed Goldstein to file a bill of costs as required by Local Rule 54.1. The opinion does not state a final dollar amount for costs.