McGuire v. Murphy

285 F. Supp. 3d 1272
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Alabama
DecidedJanuary 5, 2018
DocketCASE NO. 2:11–CV–1027–WKW
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 285 F. Supp. 3d 1272 (McGuire v. Murphy) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
McGuire v. Murphy, 285 F. Supp. 3d 1272 (M.D. Ala. 2018).

Opinion

W. Keith Watkins, CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Before the court is Plaintiff's motion for reconsideration (Doc. # 361), which is construed as containing a motion for an interim award of attorney's fees and costs. Also pending before the court is Defendant Stephen T. Marshall's motion (Doc. # 363) to summarily deny Plaintiff's motion for reconsideration and for attorney's fees. Plaintiff's motion for reconsideration is due to be granted, Plaintiff's motion for an interim award of attorney's fees and costs is due to be granted in part and denied in part, and Defendant Marshall's motion is due to be denied.

I. PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On December 11, 2011, Plaintiff filed this lawsuit challenging a number of the *1277provisions of the Alabama Sex Offender Registration and Community Notification Act ("ASORCNA"), Ala. Code 1975 § 15-20A-1 et seq. On February 5, 2015, after protracted litigation, a four-day trial, and a necessary period for consideration of arguments raised in numerous post-trial briefs,2 the court entered final judgment, which granted Plaintiff relief on two of his claims. (Doc. # 284.) Specifically, the court entered the following judgment:

In accordance with the prior proceedings, opinions, and orders of the court, it is ORDERED, ADJUDGED, and DECLARED that the Alabama Sex Offender Registration and Community Notification Act, Ala. Code § 15-20A-1 et seq. , is unconstitutional under the Ex Post Facto Clause of the United States Constitution to the extent that it requires (1) in-town homeless registrants to register (or check-in) on a weekly basis with two separate law-enforcement jurisdictions as provided by Alabama Code § 15-20A-12(b) in conjunction with § 15-20A-4(13) and (2) all in-town registrants to complete travel permit applications with two separate law-enforcement jurisdictions as provided by Alabama Code § 15-20A-15 in conjunction with § 15-20A-4(13).

(Doc. # 284.)

On February 18, 2015, Plaintiff filed a motion for attorney's fees and costs pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1988, which allows prevailing civil rights plaintiffs to recover reasonable costs and fees. (Doc. # 285.) Plaintiff sought $1,919,098.00 in attorney's fees and $69,106.36 in costs. (Doc. # 345.) Defendants opposed Plaintiff's motion, arguing that Plaintiff was not entitled to any award of fees and costs because Plaintiff was not the prevailing party. (Doc. # 334.) Alternatively, Defendants contended that any award of fees and costs should be limited because Plaintiff claimed unreasonably excessive hourly rates for an unreasonably excessive number of hours worked, the majority of items for which Plaintiff sought to recover costs were unreasonable or ineligible under § 1988, and Plaintiff obtained only limited relief. (Doc. # 334.)

Before briefing was completed on the motion for attorney's fees and costs, Plaintiff filed a notice of appeal (Doc. # 287) on March 16, 2015, and Defendants John Richardson, Luther Strange, Derrick Cunningham,3 and the Montgomery County Sheriff's Department cross-appealed. (Doc. # 305; Doc. # 310; Doc. # 316.)

On August 27, 2015, the court ordered that, "[t]o efficiently manage this case, avoid piecemeal adjudication of issues pertaining to attorney's fees and costs, and conserve judicial resources, ... justice would be best served by denying [Plaintiff's] motion for attorney's fees without prejudice and with leave to re-file the motion after the conclusion of the appeal." (Doc. # 350 at 2.) Accordingly, the court exercised its discretion to deny Plaintiff's motion for attorney's fees without prejudice and with leave to file a new motion for attorney's fees after the Court of Appeals entered a mandate on the pending appeal.

On March 18, 2015, Alabama House Bill No. 316 was introduced. Among other revisions to ASORCNA, the bill sought to *1278remove the two double-registration requirements from which this court's February 5, 2015 Order granted Plaintiff relief. On June 11, 2015, the bill was passed into law, and it became effective on September 1, 2015. 2015 Alabama Laws Act 463 ("H.B. 316").

Nearly three years after Plaintiff filed his notice of appeal, and over two years after the court denied Plaintiff's motion for attorney's fees and costs with leave to refile after issuance of a mandate, the appeal remains pending.

II. ANALYSIS

A. Motion for Reconsideration

Before deciding the merits of Plaintiff's motion for interim fees and costs, the court must decide whether Plaintiff has demonstrated good cause to reconsider the August 27, 2015 Order prior to issuance of the mandate. The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure do not specify the grounds available for motions for reconsideration of non-final orders, and resolution of such motions is within the court's discretion. Region 8 Forest Serv. Timber Purchasers Council v. Alcock , 993 F.2d 800, 806 (11th Cir. 1993) ; see Fed. R. Civ. P 54(b) (providing merely that nonfinal orders "may be revised at any time before the entry of a judgment adjudicating all the claims and all the parties' rights and liabilities"). To ensure efficient judicial administration, this court generally does not entertain motions for reconsideration on grounds that were raised previously or that could have been timely raised before issuance of the order from which relief is sought. However, the court may grant relief from a nonfinal order upon a showing of good cause, such as a change in circumstances justifying relief, an intervening change in the law, a clear error on the part of the court, circumstances similar to those justifying relief from final judgments under Rules 59(e) or 60 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, or other reasons demonstrating that relief is necessary to rectify clear error, prevent injustice, or ensure the efficient disposition of the case. Cf. Pres. Endangered Areas of Cobb's History, Inc. v. U.S. Army Corps of Eng'rs , 916 F.Supp. 1557, 1560 (N.D. Ga. 1995) (describing the standard of review on motions for reconsideration under that court's local rules).

This case presents complex and difficult issues that affect the validity of state laws regarding sex offender community notification requirements. Thus, its resolution reasonably requires more time than necessary in ordinary cases.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
285 F. Supp. 3d 1272, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mcguire-v-murphy-almd-2018.