A federal judge in North Carolina has awarded a Charlotte attorney more than a half-million dollars for his work prosecuting a reverse discrimination case and defending it on appeal, though the final payout was reduced after a federal appellate court tossed the jury's $10 million punitive damages award against a health care employer.

On Oct. 8, the U.S. District Court for the District for the Western District of North Carolina awarded the plaintiff's counsel, S. Luke Largess of Tin Fulton Walker & Owen, $154,665 in fees and costs for partially prevailing on an appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. In March, the Fourth Circuit affirmed a jury's award of $3.5 million in back and front pay in favor of the plaintiff, David Duvall, but the appellate court reversed the $10 million punitive damages portion against Novant Health.