This month we discuss Perez v. Westchester County Dep’t of Corr.,1 in which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed a district court decision holding that a party to a private settlement, whose terms are incorporated into an order of dismissal, is a prevailing party under 42 U.S.C. §1988(b) (a fee-shifting statute governing civil rights actions), and therefore eligible for attorney’s fees. The Second Circuit’s decision, written by Judge Guido Calabresi and joined by Judge Debra Ann Livingston and District Judge Edward R. Korman (sitting by designation), expands the circumstances in which a settling party may be considered a “prevailing party” and thus eligible for attorney’s fees under 42 U.S.C. §1988(b). The decision was a case of first impression for the Second Circuit, which had never previously considered whether an order of dismissal incorporating settlement terms was sufficient to constitute a judicial imprimatur and thus support a grant of attorney’s fees.2

Procedural History

Defendants, the Westchester County Department of Corrections and three of its employees, refused to provide Halal meat to Muslim inmates, other than during two Muslim holidays. In contrast, the county accommodated Jewish inmates by serving them Kosher meat approximately four or five times a week. While the county did provide a “Muslim diet tray,” it generally deviated from Muslim dietary practices. Despite years of protests and grievances by Muslim inmates and the jail’s Muslim chaplain, the county’s practice of declining to serve Halal meat to Muslim inmates persisted.

This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.

To view this content, please continue to their sites.

Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now

Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now

Why am I seeing this?

LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are third party online distributors of the broad collection of current and archived versions of ALM's legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law customers are able to access and use ALM's content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, The New York Law Journal, and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information.

For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [email protected]