Civil procedure

Attorneys' Fees

An award of attorneys' fees is a court order making the losing side pay the winner's legal costs, which in the United States happens only when a statute or contract allows it.

The default American rule is that everyone pays their own lawyer. Exceptions are common in civil rights, employment, patent, and consumer statutes, where fee-shifting exists so that small claims can find counsel.

The amount is usually calculated with the lodestar: a reasonable hourly rate multiplied by hours reasonably spent, adjusted for the results. Fee litigation is its own mini-case, with billing records filed and contested line by line.

Fee awards are also a real driver of settlement. A defendant facing a modest damages claim plus uncapped statutory fees is often negotiating about the fees, which can dwarf the underlying recovery.