San Francisco National Ass'n for the Advancement of Colored People v. San Francisco Unified School District

In this case we decide whether a civil rights plaintiff, based solely on its status as a prevailing party in an original action, may be eligible to recover attorney’s fees under 42 U.S.C. § 1988 for defending its consent decree from a collateral attack brought by a third party in a subsequent action. We hold that it may, but we affirm the district court’s denial of fees in this case as a valid exercise of the district court’s discretion.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

The San Francisco National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (“NAACP”) appeals the district court’s denial of its motion for attorney’s fees. NAACP won a consent decree 18 years ago in a school desegregation suit brought against the San Francisco Unified School District and others. Students of Chinese descent recently claimed that the consent decree unconstitutionally relies on race as a determining factor in student placement. NAACP defended the consent decree’s constitutionality and now seeks attorney’s fees for its work. Because these cases have been described in detail elsewhere, see San Francisco NAACP v. San Francisco Unified School District, 484 F.Supp. 657 (N.D.Cal.1979), and Ho by Ho v.…