Rouse v. H.B. Fuller Company
Lisa Rouse, Juston Rouse, Jenna Drouin, and Nicholas Drouin, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated v. H.B. Fuller Company and H.B. Fuller Construction Products Inc.
- John Docherty
- 0:22-cv-02173
- U.S. District Court · District of Minnesota
- 8
In Rouse v. H.B. Fuller Company, Magistrate Judge Docherty ordered H.B. Fuller Company to pay plaintiffs' counsel a total of $65,759.45 in attorneys' fees and costs after the company failed to adequately prepare its corporate representative for a court-required deposition, granting the fee requests in part and denying them in part.
Parties involved in class action litigation involving Rule 30(b)(6) corporate depositions, particularly defendants and their counsel who may face fee-shifting sanctions when a corporate witness is found inadequately prepared for a deposition, and plaintiffs' counsel seeking reimbursement of litigation costs caused by opposing party's discovery failures.
What happened
In Rouse v. H.B. Fuller Company (Case No. 22-CV-02173), a class action lawsuit pending in the District of Minnesota, the court had previously ordered H.B. Fuller Company ('HBF Co.') to produce a properly prepared company representative for a second deposition after finding that the first representative, Cheryl Reinitz, was not adequately prepared for her deposition on April 10, 2025. Following that ruling, the plaintiffs asked the court to require HBF Co. to pay their attorneys' fees and costs in three categories: (1) fees for the original failed deposition, (2) fees for filing and arguing the motion to compel a better-prepared witness, and (3) fees for taking the second deposition of a new company representative, Traci Jensen.
The plaintiffs requested a total of roughly $140,000 across the three categories. The court declined to award any fees for the original Reinitz deposition, reasoning that plaintiffs would have spent that money even if HBF Co. had been properly prepared — so those costs were not caused by the company's failure. For the motion to compel, the court trimmed certain travel-related fees that plaintiffs would have incurred regardless (because they had to travel to the courthouse for a separate hearing anyway), and awarded $35,387.50. For the second deposition of Traci Jensen, the court reduced the requested attorneys' fees by half for billing entries that mixed deposition preparation work with other case work that would have been done anyway — such as preparing documents relevant to a class certification motion — ultimately awarding $30,371.95.
Magistrate Judge Docherty granted the fee requests in part and denied them in part, ordering HBF Co. to pay $35,387.50 for the costs associated with the motion to compel and $30,371.95 for the costs of the second deposition, for a combined total of $65,759.45. The court denied any award for the original Reinitz deposition fees. The ruling was based on Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 37, which requires a party whose conduct forces a motion to compel to pay the other side's reasonable expenses, including attorneys' fees.
The detailed version
Case
Lisa Rouse, Juston Rouse, Jenna Drouin, and Nicholas Drouin, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated v. H.B. Fuller Company and H.B. Fuller Construction Products Inc., Case No. 22-CV-02173 (JMB/JFD), United States District Court, District of Minnesota.
Judge
Magistrate Judge John F. Docherty.
Date
October 10, 2025.
Background
This is a class action (a lawsuit filed on behalf of a large group of similarly situated people). In a prior order dated June 25, 2025, the court had granted plaintiffs' motion to compel — a request forcing a party to comply with a discovery obligation — specifically ordering HBF Co. to produce an adequately prepared corporate representative for a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition (a type of deposition where a company must designate a witness to testify on its behalf about specified topics). The court found that the first designated witness, Cheryl Reinitz, was not adequately prepared. The court also ordered that HBF Co. pay plaintiffs' reasonable fees and costs caused by that failure. This October 10, 2025 order resolves the amount of those fees and costs.
Plaintiffs' Counsel
Two law firms — Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP ('Vorys') of Cincinnati, Ohio (lead counsel), and Lockridge Grindal Nauen PLLP ('LGN') of Minneapolis, Minnesota (local counsel). Vorys attorneys included partner David Hine ($695/hour), and associates Petra Bergman ($495/hour) and Michael Soder ($430/hour). LGN attorneys included partner David Asp ($625/hour) and associate David Hahn ($375/hour). HBF Co. did not contest these hourly rates, and the court accepted them as reasonable.
HBF Co.'s Objections
HBF Co. raised two main arguments: (1) that plaintiffs had expressly stated in their original motion that they were not seeking sanctions, and (2) that even if the court disagreed with HBF Co.'s approach to preparing its witness, that approach was supported by legal authority and was a reasonable response to difficult circumstances. The court acknowledged these as 'well-taken arguments' and factored them into its analysis.
Legal Standards Applied
- Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 37(a)(5)(A): When a motion to compel is granted, the court must require the party or attorney whose conduct necessitated the motion to pay the moving party's reasonable expenses, including attorneys' fees, unless the motion was filed prematurely, the opposing conduct was substantially justified, or an award would be unjust. - Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 37(b)(2)(C): When a party or counsel disobeys a court order, the court must order payment of reasonable expenses caused by that failure. - Inherent court authority: Courts may also award fees against parties acting in bad faith, vexatiously, wantonly, or oppressively. (Citing United States v. Gonzalez-Lopez, 403 F.3d 558 (8th Cir. 2005); Lamb Eng'g & Const. Co. v. Neb. Pub. Power Dist., 103 F.3d 1422 (8th Cir. 1997).) - Fee amounts must be determined based on the specific facts of each case. (Citing Hensley v. Eckerhart, 461 U.S. 424 (1983).)
Category 1 — April 10, 2025 Deposition of Cheryl Reinitz
Plaintiffs requested $69,305.07, covering $60,226.00 in attorneys' fees (94.80 hours by Hine and Bergman), $2,396.52 in travel expenses, and $6,682.55 in court reporter and videographer fees. The court denied this entire category, reasoning that these are costs plaintiffs would have incurred even if HBF Co. had properly prepared Ms. Reinitz. Because the fees were not caused by the company's failure, they are not compensable under Rule 37.
Category 2 — Motion to Compel (Docket No. 493)
Plaintiffs requested $37,258.62 total: $36,394.00 in attorneys' fees for drafting the motion and briefing, preparing for and attending the May 16, 2025 hearing, plus $865.62 in travel expenses (representing one-third of total travel costs, since the hearing also covered two other issues). The court denied fees for travel time (reasoning plaintiffs would have traveled to St. Paul for the case management conference regardless of the motion to compel) but awarded fees directly associated with the motion. Specifically: - Mr. Hine: $5,004.00 for May 15 hearing preparation + $4,517.50 for May 16 work - Ms. Bergman: $1,237.50 for May 15 + $1,930.50 for May 16 - Mr. Hine and Mr. Soder: $22,699.00 for 44.9 hours drafting the motion briefing - Total awarded for Category 2: $35,387.50
Category 3 — July 17, 2025 Deposition of Traci Jensen (Second Rule 30(b)(6) Deposition)
Plaintiffs requested $34,857.50: $30,837.50 in attorneys' fees (50.50 hours by Hine and Bergman) plus $4,020.45 in transcription and recording costs. The court fully awarded the $4,020.45 in transcription and recording costs since these would not have been incurred but for HBF Co.'s earlier failure. As to attorneys' fees, the court found that some billing entries improperly commingled work for the second deposition with other case work — specifically, work on documents related to Defendant's motion to deny class certification (which was denied as premature per an August 15, 2025 order) that would also benefit plaintiffs' anticipated class certification motion. The court reduced those commingled entries by one half. After those reductions, the court found $26,351.50 in compensable attorneys' fees for the second deposition. Total awarded for Category 3: $30,371.95
Disposition
Plaintiffs' fee requests (Docket Nos. 597 and 623) were GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART. HBF Co. is ordered to pay: 1. $35,387.50 for fees and costs associated with the Motion to Compel. 2. $30,371.95 for fees and costs associated with the second Rule 30(b)(6) deposition. Combined total: $65,759.45.
Reviewer note from the AI+
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