Welch

Plaintiff-Appellant Vicki Welch appeals the district court’s order awarding her attorney’s fees under 29 U.S.C. § 1132 (g)(1). She disputes the district court’s decisions to award fees at an hourly rate of $250, to apply across-the-board reductions in the number of hours requested because Welch’s attorneys block billed and billed in quarter-hour increments and to disallow time incurred for discrete tasks such as attorney conferences. We affirm the district court’s fee award in most respects but reverse in part, holding that the district court erred in setting Welch’s counsel’s hourly rate at $250 and in imposing a 20 percent across-the-board reduction for block billing. We remand for a new determination of the court’s fee award.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Welch sued Defendant-Appellee Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (MetLife) under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. §§ 1001-1191 , alleging that MetLife improperly denied her benefits under a long-term disability plan. See 29 U.S.C. § 1132 . Six months after Welch filed suit, MetLife agreed to honor Welch’s claim. Thereafter, Welch moved for an award of costs and attorney’s fees…