SYLVESTER JONES, Plaintiff-Appellee, versus UNITED SPACE ALLIANCE, L.L.C., Defendant-Appellant., 494 F.3d 1306

Summary

The employer had served the employee with an offer of judgment under Fla. Stat. § 768.79, and the employee did not accept the offer. Because of the grant of summary judgment, the employer claimed that it was entitled to fees under § 768.79. The district court found that Fed. R. Civ. P. 68 preempted state law and alternatively, that Fla. Stat. § 768.79 was preempted by 42 U.S.C.S. § 1988. On review, the court affirmed the denial of fees. Florida case law limited the application of § 768.79 in federal civil rights cases under 42 U.S.C.S. § 1988 to claims that were frivolous, unreasonable, or without foundation. Because cases brought under § 1988 and Title VII were governed by the same standard and the FCRA was interpreted consistently with Title VII, the court found that the FCRA also prevented the employer from recovering fees under Fla. Stat. § 768.79. The court did not reach the preemption issue under Fed. R. Civ. P. 68.