Seyfarth Synopsis: Two recent lower court decisions provide a primer on when a prevailing party in an ERISA case may recover fees (as a fee award is not automatic) and a window into the future of video hearings to resolve fee motions.

Two interesting lower court decisions on attorney fee motions were recently issued from Judge Susan Brnovich of the federal District of Arizona and Judge Beau Miller in the District Court of Harris County, Texas of the 190th Judicial District. One decision presents a refresher course on the merits of ERISA fee motions and the other used the novel procedural approach of conducting a Zoom video hearing in lieu of live appearances.

The first decision, United Air Ambulance LLC, v. Cerner Corporation, et al., Case No. CV-17-04016 (U.S. Dist. Ct. D. Ariz., Apr. 14, 2020), addressed when prevailing ERISA plaintiffs may recover fees as instructed by the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Judge Brnovich denied ERISA Section 502(g)(1) fees after carefully considering the following factors: (1) degree of the opposing party's culpability or bad faith, (2) the ability of the opposing party to satisfy an award of fees, (3) whether an award of fees against the opposing party would deter others from acting under similar circumstances, (4) whether the party seeking fees sought to benefit all participants and beneficiaries under an ERISA plan or to resolve a significant ERISA legal question, and (5) the relative merits of the parties' positions. The Court found that these factors split evenly, save for two, which tipped the scales against an award of fees to the plaintiff. The deterrence factor weighed against plaintiff because the case involved a unique set of facts, so no one else was likely to encounter the scenario at issue. The resolution of the case was not a benefit to all participants under the plan and resolved no significant legal question about ERISA, as it focused on procedural shortcomings. This decision is a reminder that, unlike the case with other federal statutes such as Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ERISA fee motions by prevailing a plaintiff (or defendant) should not always be given a presumption of success.

In Ahmed v. Texas Fair Plan Assoc., Case No. 2016-09336, Judge Miller considered whether to grant a fee motion in an insurance case. Following the Texas Supreme Court's order mandating that all hearings be conducted remotely, the Court held a one-day bench trial via Zoom.

The post-COVID-19 world will present many new ways of doing business, and we can foresee federal judges experimenting with Zoom hearings in lieu of expensive and now unwelcome travel. A good place to start may be with fee motions, as they are ancillary to the merits of the case. Video hearings will present new challenges for lawyers and clients, not the least of which are video quality and reliability, and maintaining eye contact in a virtual world. Savvy ERISA attorneys are likely to improve their command of video appearances and confront the unique challenges of video persuasion, as we enter the brave, new world of the e-trial attorney.

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