Zinna v. Congrove

In 2012, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals held that the district court abused its discretion when it awarded Appellant Michael Zinna only $8000 in attorney's fees. The case was remanded to the district court to calculate a reasonable fee. In a separate order, the Tenth Circuit ruled Zinna was entitled to a reasonable attorney’s fee for the appellate proceedings and remanded the matter to the district court to calculate that fee also. On remand, the district court entered two orders: the first awarded Zinna $16,240 in trial fees and the second awarded him $18,687.50 in appellate fees. Zinna filed a notice of appeal within thirty days of the judgment. Upon re-review, the Tenth Circuit concluded Zinna's notice of appeal was timely as to both aspects of the fee award. Furthermore, the Court concluded the district court ignored our mandate, thereby abusing its discretion when it calculated attorney's fees for the trial court proceedings. Zinna's arguments relating to the award of appellate fees were waived due to inadequate briefing. The case was remanded one again for further proceedings.View "Zinna v. Congrove" on Justia Law