Wyatt
Wyatt v. Horkley Self-Serve, Inc.
Opinion
Lead Opinion
MEMORANDUM **
Defendants made a Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 68 offer of judgment to plaintiff Jodi Wyatt, who alleged that defendants violated Title VII and Idaho law. Wyatt accepted, knowing that defendants mistakenly did not include attorneys’ fees as part of their offer. The district court entered judgment for Wyatt and awarded her attorneys’ fees. We vacate the judgment and award, and remand.
We review the district court’s interpretation of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure de novo. See Swedberg v. Marotzke, 339 F.3d 1139, 1141 (2003). We review attorneys’ fees awards for abuse of discretion. See Wilcox v. City of Reno, 42 F.3d 550, 553 (9th Cir.1994). “The usual rules of contract construction apply to interpreting the terms of a Rule 68 settlement offer....” Guerrero v. Cummings, 70 F.3d 1111, 1113 (9th Cir.1995) (quotations and citation omitted).
Defendants’ Rule 68 offer did not limit costs, which in civil rights cases include attorneys’ fees. 42 U.S.C. § 1988 (b); Erdman v. Cochise County, 926 F.2d 877, 880 (9th Cir.1991). The district court therefore “include[d] in its judgment an additional amount which in its discretion it determine[d] to be sufficient to…