Rule 54 — Judgment; Costs

Fed. R. Civ. P. 54

• Source: Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
• Rule: 54
• TITLE VII: JUDGMENT
• Citation: Fed. R. Civ. P. 54

Text

(a) DEFINITION; FORM. ‘‘Judgment’’ as used in these rules in-
cludes a decree and any order from which an appeal lies. A judg-
ment should not include recitals of pleadings, a master’s report,
or a record of prior proceedings.
(b) JUDGMENT ON MULTIPLE CLAIMS OR INVOLVING MULTIPLE PAR-
TIES. When an action presents more than one claim for relief—
whether as a claim, counterclaim, crossclaim, or third-party
claim—or when multiple parties are involved, the court may di-
rect entry of a final judgment as to one or more, but fewer than
all, claims or parties only if the court expressly determines that
there is no just reason for delay. Otherwise, any order or other de-
cision, however designated, that adjudicates fewer than all the
claims or the rights and liabilities of fewer than all the parties
does not end the action as to any of the claims or parties and may
be revised at any time before the entry of a judgment adjudicating
all the claims and all the parties’ rights and liabilities.
(c) DEMAND FOR JUDGMENT; RELIEF TO BE GRANTED. A default
judgment must not differ in kind from, or exceed in amount, what
is demanded in the pleadings. Every other final judgment should
grant the relief to which each party is entitled, even if the party
has not demanded that relief in its pleadings.
(d) COSTS; ATTORNEY’SFEES.
(1) Costs Other Than Attorney’s Fees. Unless a federal statute,
these rules, or a court order provides otherwise, costs—other
than attorney’s fees—should be allowed to the prevailing
party. But costs against the United States, its officers, and its
agencies may be imposed only to the extent allowed by law.
The clerk may tax costs on 14 days’ notice. On motion served
within the next 7 days, the court may review the clerk’s ac-
tion.
(2) Attorney’s Fees.
(A) Claim to Be by Motion. A claim for attorney’s fees and
related nontaxable expenses must be made by motion un-
less the substantive law requires those fees to be proved at
trial as an element of damages.
(B) Timing and Contents of the Motion. Unless a statute or
a court order provides otherwise, the motion must:
(i) be filed no later than 14 days after the entry of
judgment;
(ii) specify the judgment and the statute, rule, or
other grounds entitling the movant to the award;
(iii) state the amount sought or provide a fair esti-
mate of it; and
(iv) disclose, if the court so orders, the terms of any
agreement about fees for the services for which the
claim is made.

(C) Proceedings. Subject to Rule 23(h), the court must, on
a party’s request, give an opportunity for adversary sub-
missions on the motion in accordance with Rule 43(c) or 78.
The court may decide issues of liability for fees before re-
ceiving submissions on the value of services. The court
must find the facts and state its conclusions of law as pro-
vided in Rule 52(a).
(D) Special Procedures by Local Rule; Reference to a Master
or a Magistrate Judge. By local rule, the court may estab-
lish special procedures to resolve fee-related issues with-
out extensive evidentiary hearings. Also, the court may
refer issues concerning the value of services to a special
master under Rule 53 without regard to the limitations of
Rule 53(a)(1), and may refer a motion for attorney’s fees to
a magistrate judge under Rule 72(b) as if it were a disposi-
tive pretrial matter.
(E) Exceptions. Subparagraphs (A)–(D) do not apply to
claims for fees and expenses as sanctions for violating
these rules or as sanctions under 28 U.S.C. §1927.

Advisory Committee Notes

(As amended Dec. 27, 1946, eff. Mar. 19, 1948; Apr. 17, 1961, eff. July 19, 1961; Mar. 2, 1987, eff. Aug. 1, 1987; Apr. 22, 1993, eff. Dec. 1, 1993; Apr. 29, 2002, eff. Dec. 1, 2002; Mar. 27, 2003, eff. Dec. 1, 2003; Apr. 30, 2007, eff. Dec. 1, 2007; Mar. 26, 2009, eff. Dec. 1, 2009.)