The Supreme Court Meant What It Said About The Finality Of Judgments

Twenty-five years after the Supreme Court first explained how an unresolved attorney's fee issue impacts the finality of a district court's decision, the Court once again addressed this surprisingly confusing question last week. This question has far-reaching practical implications for litigants and appellate practitioners alike because the date a decision is "final" starts the 30-day clock on the time to file an appeal. A litigant who fails to file a notice of appeal within the 30-day window forever loses the right to appeal the district court's adverse decision.

This is what happened to the unfortunate pension funds in Ray Haluch Gravel Co. v. Central Pension Fund of Int'l Union of Operating Eng'rs, No. 12-992 (Jan. 15, 2014). In Ray Haluch, several pension funds (Funds) sued Ray Haluch Gravel Co. for failure to make certain payments to the Funds which were required by federal law. The Funds also sought attorney's fees pursuant to both federal law and the terms of a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) the Funds had with the company. The district court decided the amount of unpaid benefits the company owed the Funds on June 17, 2011, and the attorney's fees to which the Funds were entitled on July 25. Unhappy with the district court's calculations, the Funds appealed both of the district court's decisions on Aug. 15, 2011 - less than 30 days after the attorney's fee award but more than 30 days after the court's calculation of benefits owed. On appeal, the First Circuit concluded that the Funds' appeal of both decisions was timely because the fees awarded to the Funds under the CBA were really part of the Funds' overall damages so the district court's decision was not "final" until both the benefits and attorney's fee questions were resolved.

Because federal appellate courts had thoroughly split (4-4) on this issue even after guidance from the Court in Budinich v. Becton Dickinson & Co., 486 U.S. 196 (1998), the Supreme Court took the case and decided unanimously against the Funds. According to the Supreme Court, "[w]hether the claim for attorney's fees is based on a statute, a contract, or both, the pendency of a ruling on an award for fees and costs does not prevent, as a general rule, the merits judgment from becoming final for purposes of appeal."

The Funds asserted several arguments that, at first blush, might support their position. First, they argued that the district court's calculation of benefits was...