Centennial Archaeology, Inc. v. AECOM, Inc. ( 2012 )


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  •                                                                      FILED
    United States Court of Appeals
    Tenth Circuit
    July 27, 2012
    PUBLISH
    Elisabeth A. Shumaker
    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS Clerk of Court
    TENTH CIRCUIT
    CENTENNIAL ARCHAEOLOGY,
    INC., a Colorado corporation,
    Plaintiff - Appellee,
    v.                                              No. 11-8000
    AECOM, INC., a Delaware
    corporation,
    Defendant - Appellant.
    APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
    FOR THE DISTRICT OF WYOMING
    (D.C. NO. 2:09-CV-00101-WFD)
    Andrea Richard, The Richard Law Firm, P.C., Jackson, Wyoming, for Defendant -
    Appellant.
    Donald I. Schultz, Schultz & Schultz LLP, Cheyenne, Wyoming, for Plaintiff -
    Appellee.
    Before HARTZ, O’BRIEN, and MATHESON, Circuit Judges.
    HARTZ, Circuit Judge.
    AECOM, Inc. hired Centennial Archaeology, Inc. to perform cultural-
    resources survey work in connection with a wind-energy project. When AECOM
    refused to pay Centennial for some of its work, Centennial brought suit against
    AECOM in the United States District Court for the District of Wyoming.
    Centennial prevailed on several claims and the parties ultimately settled on appeal
    the issues raised with respect to the merits of the litigation. This appeal concerns
    the parties’ dispute about the district court’s postjudgment order requiring
    AECOM to pay Centennial $58,361.51 in attorney fees for misconduct in the
    course of discovery.
    We have jurisdiction under 
    28 U.S.C. § 1291
     and affirm. The magistrate
    judge and district court reasonably found that AECOM had frustrated the
    discovery process and stalled the resolution of this case. And the amount of the
    fee award was proper. In particular, Centennial was entitled to an award under
    Fed. R. Civ. P. 37 even though its attorneys were working for a fixed fee.
    I.    BACKGROUND
    A.     Events Leading to Litigation
    Power Company of Wyoming (PCW) hired ENSR Corporation in 2008 to
    prepare an environmental-impact statement for a 1000-turbine wind-energy
    project south of Rawlins, Wyoming. ENSR and Centennial had previously
    entered into a written consulting-services agreement (the Consulting Agreement).
    AECOM later purchased ENSR, and under the Consulting Agreement it issued
    Centennial a $674,900 purchase order for work relating to the environmental-
    impact statement. Soon after beginning work on the project, however, Centennial
    notified AECOM that it was experiencing higher costs than anticipated. The
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    parties agreed that Centennial should complete its field work before submitting a
    request for a change order to increase the contract price, even though the
    Consulting Agreement apparently required advance approval of a change order.
    When Centennial submitted the request, AECOM forwarded it to PCW, but PCW
    refused to approve it. AECOM then issued a stop-work order and informed
    Centennial that it would not pay expenses exceeding the purchase-order price.
    Centennial sued, claiming that it was entitled to payment for all work
    performed and costs incurred before AECOM issued the stop-work order because
    AECOM had waived the change-order requirement. It later added claims for
    tortious interference with prospective business relationships and trade
    disparagement. AECOM disclaimed liability for all but the purchase-order price
    and counterclaimed that Centennial had breached the Consulting Agreement in
    various respects, although it later voluntarily dismissed the counterclaims. The
    case was tried to a jury, which returned a verdict in Centennial’s favor on its
    breach-of-contract claim and on one of its tortious-interference claims.
    B.     Discovery Disputes
    During pretrial proceedings Centennial and AECOM were repeatedly
    unable to resolve their discovery disputes without court intervention. Centennial
    filed three motions to compel discovery, two of which were followed by AECOM
    motions for protective orders. For the most part Centennial received its requested
    relief. We summarize the disputes.
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    1.     AECOM’s Privilege Log and the April 12, 2010, Order
    Centennial’s first request for production sought records of certain AECOM
    internal communications. AECOM produced some documents but refused to
    produce documents listed in a two-page privilege log as protected by the attorney-
    client privilege and the attorney-work-product doctrine. Centennial’s counsel
    sent a letter dated January 8, 2010, asking AECOM’s counsel for a more detailed
    log and for reconsideration of the assertions of privilege. AECOM’s counsel
    revised the log but did not disclose additional documents, leading Centennial’s
    counsel to write a second letter, dated February 16; and on March 1 Centennial
    filed a motion to compel AECOM to produce more than 200 emails. AECOM
    opposed the motion and filed a motion for a protective order and a motion to
    strike the motion to compel because of Centennial’s failure to confer on the
    matter.
    After reviewing in camera the withheld emails, the magistrate judge
    granted Centennial’s motion in part in an order on April 12 (the April 12 Order).
    The judge ruled that no email listed as a “communication in anticipation of
    litigation” was protected by the work-product doctrine and ordered AECOM to
    produce those documents. Aplt. App., Vol. I at 426. Although the judge upheld
    most of AECOM’s claims of attorney-client privilege, he rejected some and
    ordered AECOM to disclose those unprivileged emails. On April 16 AECOM
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    produced a number of emails and filed a notice of compliance with the April 12
    Order.
    2.    The April 27, 2010, Order
    The parties also disagreed about the discoverability of evidence related to
    their previous interactions (course-of-dealing evidence) and the adequacy of
    AECOM’s discovery responses. Centennial’s initial disclosures listed nine
    occasions on which AECOM had paid Centennial without requiring advance
    approval of a change order, and a letter accompanying the disclosures asked
    AECOM to provide a list of any previous occasions when AECOM had refused to
    pay Centennial for lack of such advance approval. When AECOM failed to
    respond, Centennial sought the advance-approval information in its first and
    second discovery requests. AECOM objected to the requests on various grounds,
    including relevance, and filed a motion to exclude course-of-dealing evidence
    from trial. The district court effectively denied the motion in a March 23, 2010,
    order denying Centennial’s motion for summary judgment, which stated that
    evidence of the parties’ previous dealings was relevant to whether AECOM had
    waived the advance-approval requirement for change orders.
    On March 26 Centennial filed a motion to compel production by AECOM
    of course-of-dealing evidence and to impose sanctions, including exclusion of any
    course-of-dealing evidence offered by AECOM. At the April 19 hearing on the
    motion, Centennial also made an oral request for attorney fees. On April 27 the
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    magistrate judge issued an order (the April 27 Order) that AECOM fully respond
    by May 11 or be precluded from offering course-of-dealing evidence. But he
    denied without prejudice the request to impose other sanctions or to award
    attorney fees, explaining (1) that evidentiary sanctions were not appropriate
    because postponement of the trial enabled AECOM to cure much of the prejudice
    to Centennial by now responding fully to discovery requests and (2) that he would
    not consider imposing attorney fees because AECOM had not been provided a
    reasonable opportunity to respond to Centennial’s oral request.
    AECOM appealed the magistrate judge’s order shortly before its
    supplemental discovery responses were due. The district court affirmed, stating
    that the magistrate judge had “conducted a careful and thorough review of
    [AECOM’s] discovery responses and the tortured discovery history in this case.”
    
    Id.,
     Vol. II at 690. On May 11 AECOM filed a notice of compliance with the
    April 27 Order, representing that it had supplemented its responses “as directed
    by the Court.” 
    Id. at 527
    .
    3.    Leave to Amend, Expedited Discovery, and the June 9,
    2010, Order
    After AECOM produced several internal emails in response to the April 12
    Order, Centennial moved on May 14, 2010, to amend its complaint, claiming that
    the emails revealed for the first time that AECOM had deliberately interfered with
    Centennial’s ability to obtain other projects and that this information supported
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    several business-tort claims. Centennial also filed a motion for expedited
    discovery. AECOM opposed the amendment, arguing that Centennial had failed
    to offer a valid explanation for waiting until the eve of trial (trial had been
    rescheduled for June 22) to amend its complaint. On May 20 the magistrate judge
    found that AECOM had made it difficult for Centennial to obtain discovery,
    granted leave to amend, and ordered the parties to complete discovery on the new
    claims by June 15. AECOM appealed the magistrate judge’s decision to the
    district court, but the district court affirmed.
    On May 21 Centennial sought written discovery on its new claims, and
    proposed a deposition schedule to AECOM’s counsel. But the parties could not
    reach agreement. On June 4 Centennial moved to compel discovery, and on June
    4 and 5 AECOM filed a motion to continue the trial and five motions for
    protective orders opposing depositions noticed by Centennial.
    On June 9 the district court granted Centennial’s motion to compel and
    denied AECOM’s motions for protective orders (the June 9 Order). On the same
    day, but in a separate order, the court denied AECOM’s motion to continue. The
    June 9 Order required AECOM to cooperate in arranging depositions and to
    respond to Centennial’s written discovery requests by June 11. It stated that
    AECOM and its counsel had created scheduling pressures by failing “to properly
    comply with discovery obligations throughout this case.” Aplee. Supp. App.,
    Vol. II at 2048.
    -7-
    C.     Centennial’s Sanctions Motions
    Centennial filed three pleadings seeking sanctions. The pleadings accused
    AECOM of violating both the April 12 and April 27 Orders and sought monetary
    and evidentiary sanctions for those violations and other discovery abuse. Of
    particular relevance to this appeal are Centennial’s requests for attorney fees. It
    sought $52,870 for its counsel’s work in (1) seeking “discovery by consultation
    and correspondence,” Aplt. App., Vol. II at 719; (2) preparing (a) its March 1
    motion to compel, (b) a reply brief in support of that motion, (c) an opposition to
    AECOM’s motion for protective order, (d) its March 26 motion to impose
    sanctions and compel discovery, (e) a reply brief in support of that motion, (f) an
    opposition to AECOM’s renewed motion to exclude evidence, (g) an opposition to
    AECOM’s appeal to the district court of the April 27 Order, and (h) its motion for
    leave to amend the complaint; and (3) preparing for and attending the April 19
    hearing on its March 26 motion. Centennial also sought $24,752.50 in attorney
    fees for expenses incurred as a result of AECOM’s violation of the April 27 Order
    and for expenses in preparing, filing, and arguing (1) Centennial’s June 4 motion
    to compel depositions, (2) the opposition to the five motions for protective order,
    (3) the opposition to AECOM’s motion to continue, and (4) Centennial’s second
    sanctions motion.
    D.     The District Court’s Sanctions Order
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    The district court entered judgment on October 15, 2010, after the jury
    returned a verdict in Centennial’s favor on its breach-of-contract claim and on
    one of its tortious-interference claims. On December 3 the court granted
    Centennial’s motions for sanctions. It found that AECOM had violated both the
    April 12 Order and the April 27 Order. Because it also found that each of
    Centennial’s motions to compel had resulted in either compliance with the
    discovery request or an order to compel, it said that Centennial was entitled under
    Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(a)(5)(A) to attorney fees incurred in making the motions.
    According to the court, “[AECOM’s] pattern of obstructive discovery behavior
    ha[d] been pervasive and persistent throughout the entire course of written
    discovery and detrimental to the function of the judicial process,” and had
    “evinced a cavalier disregard for [Centennial’s] rights, the Rules of Civil
    Procedure governing discovery, and Orders of this Court seeking to enforce those
    rules.” Aplt. App., Vol. II at 1402–03. Because of “[t]he willfulness of the
    discovery misconduct, coupled with the prejudice to [Centennial],” the court
    awarded attorney fees to Centennial. 
    Id. at 1404
    . The court reviewed
    Centennial’s accounting of the hours expended on activities required to obtain the
    needed discovery, and concluded that the hours were reasonable. But it adjusted
    the two attorneys’ hourly rates of $375 and $275 down to $250 each, resulting in
    an award of $58,361.51.
    -9-
    AECOM’s principal argument on appeal is that Centennial’s fixed-fee
    arrangement with its counsel precludes an award of attorney fees. It also
    perfunctorily raises a number of meritless issues that we dispose of summarily.
    II.      DISCUSSION
    Fed. R. Civ. P. 37 contains two separate provisions that allow, and often
    require, the district court to award attorney fees for discovery misconduct. Under
    Rule 37(a)(5) the district court must ordinarily order a party to pay the opposing
    party’s reasonable expenses, including attorney fees, incurred in filing or
    opposing a discovery motion if the opposing party’s discovery motion is granted,
    the party provided discovery only after a motion to compel was filed, or the
    party’s discovery motion was denied. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(a)(5)(A), (B); 
    id. 26
    (c)(3). Rule 37(b) requires the district court ordinarily to order a party that has
    failed to obey a discovery order “to pay the reasonable expenses, including
    attorney’s fees, caused by the failure.” 
    Id. 37
    (b)(2)(C). The district court’s
    sanctions order awarded attorney fees under both provisions. It did not, however,
    specify how much of the award fell under Rule 37(a) and how much under Rule
    37(b).
    We review for abuse of discretion the district court’s decision to award
    Rule 37 attorney fees and the amount of the award. See Lancaster v. Indep. Sch.
    Dist. No. 5, 
    149 F.3d 1228
    , 1236–37 (10th Cir. 1998). We review underlying
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    factual findings for clear error. See 
    id. at 1237
    . With these standards in mind, we
    consider AECOM’s arguments on appeal.
    A.     Fixed-Fee Arrangement
    Under Rule 37 the district court may award the prevailing party in a
    discovery dispute the “[party’s] reasonable expenses incurred . . . , including
    attorney’s fees” in making or opposing a discovery motion, Fed. R. Civ. P.
    37(a)(5)(A), (B), or “the reasonable expenses, including attorney’s fees, caused
    by the failure” to obey a discovery order, id. 37(b)(2)(C). AECOM argues that it
    should not have to pay an attorney-fee award because none of the actions for
    which it was sanctioned increased the amount that Centennial had to pay its
    attorney. Centennial had originally agreed to pay its counsel by the hour, and
    paid over $11,000 in fees under that arrangement; but Centennial and its counsel
    later modified the agreement so that Centennial would pay a fixed fee of $50,000
    for all work after June 1, 2009. All discovery motions were filed after June 1,
    2009. Thus, says AECOM, no attorney fees were either “incurred in making [a]
    motion,” id. 37(a)(5)(A), or “caused by [a] failure” of AECOM to comply with a
    court order, id. 37(b)(2)(C). We disagree.
    In fee-shifting statutes the term attorney fees (or its equivalent) has become
    a term of art. In common usage an attorney fee is what one pays to or owes one’s
    attorney. In other words, it is the amount incurred by a client for the attorney’s
    services. The literal language of fee-shifting statutes is consistent with this
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    usage. For example, the fee-shifting statute for civil-rights actions, enacted in
    1976, provides that “the court, in its discretion, may allow the prevailing party
    . . . a reasonable attorney’s fee as part of the costs.” 
    42 U.S.C. § 1988
    . Because
    the statute declares the fee to be a “cost,” the natural reading would be that the
    fee should be treated the same as other costs, which are “limited to actual outlays
    or obligations,” Neil v. Honeywell Inc., 
    191 F.3d 827
    , 833 (7th Cir. 1999).
    Indeed, the statute governing verification of bills of costs, which has been in
    effect since 1948, states: “Before any bill of costs is taxed, the party claiming
    any item of cost or disbursement shall attach thereto an affidavit . . . that such
    item is correct and has been necessarily incurred in the case.” 
    28 U.S.C. § 1924
    (emphasis added). A reader limited to considering only the statutory language in
    isolation would conclude that the “attorney fee” recoverable by a prevailing party
    under § 1988 is limited to what the party owes or has paid (“necessarily
    incurred”).
    That statutory interpretation, however, would be contrary to Supreme Court
    precedent. To give but one example, in Blum v. Stenson, 
    465 U.S. 886
     (1984), the
    Supreme Court considered a fee award under § 1988 to a prevailing plaintiff
    represented by the Legal Aid Society of New York. The district court had
    awarded attorney fees based on prevailing market rates for the work performed by
    the Society. The defendant and the Solicitor General argued that reimbursement
    at such rates created a windfall and subsidized the Society because “market rates
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    incorporate operating expenses that may exceed the expenses of nonprofit legal
    services organizations, and include an element of profit unnecessary to attract
    nonprofit counsel.” Id. at 893. The Court rejected the argument. Relying on
    legislative history, it said that “Congress did not intend the calculation of fee
    awards to vary depending on whether plaintiff was represented by private counsel
    or by a nonprofit legal services organization.” Id. at 894. Perhaps more striking,
    the Court did not even concern itself with the pro bono nature of the services
    provided and the plaintiff’s having no actual outlays or obligations for attorney
    fees. Although the attorney-fee award is to the party, not the lawyers, the Court
    presumed that the award would ultimately go to the Society.
    Blum is but one of countless examples that the courts construe the term
    attorney fees to mean, not the amount actually paid or owed by the party to its
    attorney, but the value of attorney services provided to the party. As stated in
    Blanchard v. Bergeron, 
    489 U.S. 87
    , 93 (1989), “[A] ‘reasonable attorney’s fee’
    [is] reasonable compensation, in light of all the circumstances, for the time and
    effort expended by the attorney for the [party], no more and no less.” In other
    words, an “attorney fee” arises when a party uses an attorney, regardless of
    whether the attorney charges the party a fee; and the amount of the fee is the
    reasonable value of the attorney’s services. The payment arrangement for an
    attorney can vary widely—hourly rate, flat rate, salary, contingency fee, pro
    -13-
    bono. What the client pays or owes the attorney may not accurately reflect the
    reasonable value of the services.
    This interpretation of attorney fees is “an interpretation of [a fee-shifting]
    statute that is reasonable, consistent, and faithful to its apparent purpose.” 
    Id. at 100
     (Scalia, J., concurring). As we understand it, that purpose—generally shared
    by fee-shifting statutes and rules—is to protect and further legal rights by
    removing a disincentive to vindicating those rights (namely, the cost of retaining
    attorneys to pursue the rights) and creating a disincentive to violating them or
    failing to compensate victims for violations (namely, the cost of paying for the
    victims’ attorneys). See 
    id. at 93
     (“the purpose of § 1988 was to make sure that
    competent counsel was available to civil rights plaintiffs”); cf. Roadway Express,
    Inc. v. Piper, 
    447 U.S. 752
    , 764 (discovery sanctions “deter those who might be
    tempted to [sanctionable] conduct in the absence of such a deterrent” (internal
    quotation marks omitted)).
    The Supreme Court has treated in the same manner attorney fees under the
    Civil Rights Act, 
    42 U.S.C. § 1988
    , see Blanchard, 
    489 U.S. at
    88–90 (affirming
    fee above amount owed under contingency-fee arrangement), and under the Clean
    Air Act, 
    42 U.S.C. § 7604
    (d) (permitting court to “award costs of litigation
    (including reasonable attorney fees . . .) to any party”), see Pennsylvania v. Del.
    Valley Citizens’ Council for Clean Air, 
    478 U.S. 546
    , 568 (1986) (using lodestar
    method to calculate attorney-fee award). And the courts of appeals have done
    -14-
    likewise under various other statutes. See, e.g., Turner v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec.,
    Nos. 11-5012, 11-5681, 11-6033, 
    2012 WL 1889306
     (6th Cir. May 25, 2012)
    (Equal Access to Justice Act; contingency fee); Pickett v. Sheridan Health Care
    Ctr., 
    664 F.3d 632
    , 641 (7th Cir. 2011) (Title VII; contingency fee); Murkeldove
    v. Astrue, 
    635 F.3d 784
    , 791 (5th Cir. 2011) (Equal Access to Justice Act;
    contingency fee); Tire Kingdom, Inc. v. Morgan Tire & Auto, Inc., 
    253 F.3d 1332
    ,
    1337 (11th Cir. 2001) (Lanham Act; below-market hourly rate); Raney v. Fed.
    Bureau of Prisons, 
    222 F.3d 927
    , 929 (Fed. Cir. 2000) (en banc) (Back Pay Act;
    union staff counsel); Gotro v. R & B Realty Grp., 
    69 F.3d 1485
    , 1487–88 (9th Cir.
    1995) (removal statute; contingency fee); Kean v. Stone, 
    966 F.2d 119
    , 120 (3d
    Cir. 1992) (Merit System Protection Board; salaried union counsel); Am. Fed’n of
    Gov’t Emps., AFL-CIO, Local 3882 v. FLRA, 
    944 F.2d 922
    , 923 (D.C. Cir. 1991)
    (Back Pay Act; union staff counsel); Cornella v. Schweiker, 
    728 F.2d 978
    , 985–87
    (8th Cir. 1984) (Equal Access to Justice Act; pro bono legal organization); Jordan
    v. U.S. Dep’t of Justice, 
    691 F.2d 514
    , 523–24 (D.C. Cir. 1982) (Freedom of
    Information Act; unpaid law students). But cf. Assessment Techs. of WI, LLC v.
    Wiredata, Inc., 
    361 F.3d 434
    , 438–39 (7th Cir. 2004) (in copyright case, award of
    fees to prevailing party could not exceed fixed fee set in attorney-client contract).
    We see no reason to impose a different construction on the language of
    Rule 37—either the language of Rule 37(a)(5)(A) and (B) (“reasonable expenses
    incurred in making [or opposing] the motion, including attorney’s fees”) or that of
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    Rule 37(b)(2)(C) (“reasonable expenses, including attorney’s fees, caused by the
    failure [to obey an order]”). As stated in the 1970 advisory committee’s note to
    Rule 37(a)(4):
    [T]he rules should deter the abuse implicit in carrying or forcing a
    discovery dispute to court when no genuine dispute exists. And the
    potential or actual imposition of expenses is virtually the sole formal
    sanction in the rules to deter a party from pressing to a court hearing
    frivolous requests for or objections to discovery.
    The purpose of Rule 37 attorney-fee sanctions would be thwarted if a party could
    escape the sanction whenever opposing counsel’s compensation is unaffected by
    the abuse, as when the fee arrangement is a contingency fee or, as here, a flat
    rate. See Textor v. Bd. of Regents of N. Ill. Univ., 
    711 F.2d 1387
    , 1394–97 (7th
    Cir. 1983) (permitting attorney-fee award for work of salaried in-house counsel
    caused by opposing party’s willful abuse of the judicial process); Dixon v.
    Comm’r, 
    132 T.C. 55
    , 101 (T.C. 2009) (sanction for fraud on the court included
    attorney fee for work by pro bono counsel). Although we agree that in the usual
    case, “[t]he best evidence of the value of the lawyer’s services is what the client
    agreed to pay,” Assessment Techs., 
    361 F.3d at 438
    , we refuse to assume that
    Centennial believed that extra efforts by its attorney caused by AECOM’s
    violations of rules and orders were worthless. The fixed-fee arrangement was
    undoubtedly based on the assumption by both attorney and client that the attorney
    would be performing typical services in litigation conducted under the governing
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    law. The fixed fee is irrelevant to the value of the services performed because of
    AECOM’s misconduct.
    We recognize that on a few occasions circuit courts have indicated that
    when a fee-shifting statute allows recovery only for attorney fees “incurred” by a
    party (as in Rule 37(a)(5) but not Rule 37(b)(2)(C)), the party must actually have
    paid or owe the fee to qualify for reimbursement. See, e.g., In re Espy, 
    338 F.3d 1036
    , 1038–39 (D.C. Cir. 2003) (Ethics in Government Act); Wisconsin v. Hotline
    Indus., Inc., 
    236 F.3d 363
    , 366–68 (7th Cir. 2000) (
    28 U.S.C. § 1447
    (c)—removal
    statute); Marre v. United States, 
    38 F.3d 823
    , 828–29 (5th Cir. 1994) (
    26 U.S.C. § 7430
    (c)(1)(B)(iii)—tax statute). But even though some, or all, of those cases
    may have been correctly decided because of the purposes served by the particular
    fee-shifting statute at issue, we disagree with the reliance on the word incurred.
    First, as previously noted, the adjective incurred adds nothing (except,
    perhaps, emphasis) when modifying the term attorney fee, because in common
    usage a fee is something incurred. Thus, although the Supreme Court has never
    squarely stated that the inclusion of the word incurred in a fee-shifting statute
    does not affect when a fee is recoverable, it has repeatedly inserted the word
    incurred in its description of the meaning of fee-shifting statutes that do not
    contain the word. In the recent decision in Fox v. Vice, 
    131 S. Ct. 2205
     (2011),
    the Court interpreted the frequently litigated civil-rights fee-shifting statute,
    
    42 U.S.C. § 1988
     (in which the word incurred does not appear), as permitting an
    -17-
    award to a defendant “for costs that the defendant would not have incurred but for
    . . . frivolous claims,” 
    id. at 2211
     (emphasis added), while requiring the defendant
    to pay “for the attorney’s fees that the plaintiff reasonably incurred in remedying
    a breach of his civil rights,” 
    id. at 2214
     (emphasis added). In Arlington Central
    School District Board of Education v. Murphy, 
    548 U.S. 291
     (2006), the Court
    similarly interpreted the fee-shifting provision of the Individuals with Disabilities
    Education Act, 
    20 U.S.C. § 1415
    (i)(3)(B), which does not contain any version of
    the word incur, as “simply add[ing] reasonable attorney’s fees incurred by
    prevailing parents to the list of costs that prevailing parents are otherwise entitled
    to recover.” 
    Id. at 297
     (emphasis added). Likewise, in Missouri v. Jenkins,
    
    491 U.S. 274
     (1989), the Court held that an attorney-fee award against a State
    under § 1988 did not violate the Eleventh Amendment because the award
    “constituted reimbursement of expenses incurred in litigation seeking only
    prospective relief.” Id. at 278 (emphasis added, internal quotation marks
    omitted). And the Court has even described two fee-shifting statutes—one with
    and one without the word incurred—as using “virtually identical language.”
    Astrue v. Ratliff, 
    130 S. Ct. 2521
    , 2529 (2010) (referring to § 1988 and the Equal
    Access to Justice Act provision, 
    28 U.S.C. § 2412
    (d)(1)(A)).
    Second, and we think dispositively, the fee-shifting statutes that one might
    wish to distinguish because they do not use the word incurred generally provide
    that such fees are to be awarded as costs; and a party is not entitled to recover a
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    cost without submitting an affidavit that it was “necessarily incurred.” 
    28 U.S.C. § 1924
    .
    This is not to say that all fee-shifting statutes must be interpreted
    identically. See Fogerty v. Fantasy, Inc., 
    510 U.S. 517
     (1994) (holding that under
    the Copyright Act fee-shifting statute, 
    17 U.S.C. § 505
    , defendants and plaintiffs
    are to be treated the same, contrary to the Court’s interpretation of § 1988). But
    in interpreting such statutes, courts should look to their statutory purposes rather
    than focusing on the inclusion of a word (incurred) that, in ordinary usage, would
    be read into the statute in any event. In light of the clear purposes of the
    fee-shifting provisions of Rule 37, we believe that Centennial is entitled to an
    attorney-fee award even though its lawyers were working under a fixed fee. See
    Ed. A. Wilson, Inc. v. Gen. Servs. Admin., 
    126 F.3d 1406
    , 1408–11 (Fed. Cir.
    1997) (Equal Access to Justice Act; awarding fee when insurer paid the fee even
    though statute limited award to “expenses incurred by [the] party” (internal
    quotation marks omitted)).
    B.     Arguments Disposed of Summarily
    1.     Criminal Sanctions
    Centennial’s motion for sanctions relied only on Rule 37 as ground for the
    sanctions; and the district court cited only that Rule in support of its award.
    AECOM argues on appeal, however, that the district court’s angry comments, its
    award of fees for attorney work other than gathering information, and the timing
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    of the award (five months after trial) all show that the award was really a sanction
    for criminal contempt. Because the procedures for criminal contempt were not
    followed, it contends that the sanctions order should be reversed. AECOM relies
    on Law v. Nat’l Collegiate Athletic Ass’n, 
    134 F.3d 1438
     (10th Cir. 1998). In that
    case we reversed an order imposing a noncompensatory monetary sanction for a
    discovery violation, stating that the noncompensatory sanction was a criminal-
    contempt order.
    We reject AECOM’s argument. Law, whatever its merits, is not apposite
    because the award here was undoubtedly intended to be compensatory. The
    record is clear that the sanction was imposed under Rule 37. Of course, if
    AECOM could show that the court did not follow proper procedures under that
    Rule or imposed sanctions not permitted by the Rule, it may obtain relief. But, as
    we hold in this opinion, it has failed to make such a showing.
    2.    Timeliness and Necessity of Centennial’s Motions to
    Compel
    AECOM argues that the district court erred in awarding sanctions because
    Centennial’s motions to compel were untimely. The argument is colorable
    because the discovery deadline was December 18, 2009, yet Centennial did not
    file its motions to compel until March 2010, when trial was set for April 26.
    Ordinarily, however, we defer to the discretion of the district court in deciding
    whether a motion is too tardy to be considered. See Norton v. City of Marietta,
    -20-
    
    432 F.3d 1145
    , 1156 (10th Cir. 2005) (per curiam) (district court had discretion to
    deny motion to compel as untimely); United States ex rel. Becker v. Westinghouse
    Savannah River Co., 
    305 F.3d 284
    , 290 (4th Cir. 2002) (“The district court has
    discretion to consider an untimely motion to compel if the movant offers an
    acceptable explanation for the motion’s tardiness.” (brackets and internal
    quotation marks omitted)). We see no abuse of discretion here. As the district
    court stated, neither it nor the Federal Rules set a deadline to move to compel and
    Centennial had delayed filing a motion as it sought voluntary compliance from
    AECOM.
    AECOM also argues that Centennial’s motion to compel was unnecessary
    because AECOM had agreed to provide the requested documents without a court
    order and Centennial already possessed the information that it sought. But the
    magistrate judge rejected the first argument, finding that AECOM had failed to
    meet the agreement’s deadline and that its later attempt to respond to Centennial’s
    discovery request was inadequate. AECOM did not challenge that finding in its
    opening brief. See Reedy v. Werholtz, 
    660 F.3d 1270
    , 1274 (10th Cir. 2011)
    (appellant abandons arguments not made in opening brief). And AECOM’s
    second argument is likewise meritless. As the magistrate judge recognized,
    Centennial had a right to request any course-of-dealing evidence that AECOM
    possessed, even if it would prove to be duplicative of information in Centennial’s
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    possession. We therefore reject the arguments that Centennial’s motion was
    unnecessary.
    3.   Privileged Status of AECOM’s Internal Emails
    AECOM argues that the district court should not have awarded sanctions
    based on AECOM’s failure to produce its internal emails because the withheld
    emails were privileged. It contends that the magistrate judge was wrong to
    conclude otherwise and that the district court was wrong to accept the magistrate
    judge’s erroneous conclusion.
    We reject this claim of error because the issue is not properly before us.
    AECOM did not appeal to the district court the magistrate judge’s order finding
    the emails not privileged, so the issue is waived. See Pippinger v. Rubin, 
    129 F.3d 519
    , 533–34 (10th Cir. 1997); Ayala v. United States, 
    980 F.2d 1342
    , 1352
    (10th Cir. 1992). Moreover, AECOM has not provided a sufficient record on
    appeal for review of its argument. Although scores of emails were at issue, the
    sole evidence that AECOM presents consists of two pages of emails on which
    only a few words survived redaction. See In re City of New York, 
    607 F.3d 923
    ,
    948 (2d Cir. 2010) (“To assess both the applicability of the privilege and the need
    for the documents, the district court must ordinarily review the documents in
    question.”); FDIC v. United Pac. Ins. Co., 
    152 F.3d 1266
    , 1276 n.6 (10th Cir.
    1998) (“The party seeking to invoke the attorney-client privilege has the burden
    of establishing its applicability. To satisfy this burden, it is insufficient for the
    -22-
    [party invoking privilege] merely to contend that documents contain privileged
    information.” (citation omitted)).
    4.   Compliance with April 12 and April 27 Orders
    AECOM argues that because it never violated either of the discovery orders
    of April 12 and April 27, the district court erred in awarding fees under Rule 37.
    We reject the argument.
    To begin with, AECOM violated the April 12 Order. Its brief admits as
    much when it acknowledges that it failed to produce an email until May 20, after
    Centennial had twice brought the error to AECOM’s attention. Moreover, even
    though the email may not have been particularly important, AECOM has not
    shown that any part of the fee award was based on a violation of the April 12
    Order, and Centennial’s counsel at oral argument claimed that the missing email
    was not a basis for any attorney fees. AECOM has shown no basis for relief on
    this ground.
    As for the April 27 Order, it required that AECOM “fully and adequately
    respond to” Centennial’s discovery requests by May 11, 2010. Aplt. App., Vol. I
    at 496. Although AECOM did timely supplement its discovery responses, the
    district court found the responses incomplete and inadequate. AECOM’s opening
    brief provides no response to the district court’s specific findings except to argue
    that it had not improperly delayed production of notes taken by assistant project
    manager Mark Degner. AECOM now suggests that the notes were properly
    -23-
    withheld as privileged; but its argument below was only that “Degner’s notes
    were inadvertently not produced.” 
    Id.,
     Vol. II at 1036. AECOM provides no
    reason for this court to consider an argument not raised below. See Carpenter v.
    Boeing Co., 
    456 F.3d 1183
    , 1198 n.2 (10th Cir. 2006) (“[O]ur general rule is not
    to address arguments that were not first presented to the district court.”). We also
    reject AECOM’s argument that Degner’s notes were not covered by the April 27
    Order. The district court found that the notes were responsive to Centennial’s
    first document request, and the April 27 Order required AECOM to supplement
    fully its discovery disclosures. AECOM presents no argument to the contrary.
    5.    Centennial’s Motion to Amend and AECOM’s Motion to
    Continue the Trial
    AECOM contends that the district court’s sanctions order was improperly
    based on AECOM’s resistance to Centennial’s amendment to the complaint, its
    belief that AECOM’s attorney had misrepresented that she had a scheduling
    conflict, and its displeasure with AECOM’s June motion to continue the trial. We
    disagree.
    The portions of the record referenced by AECOM do not support its
    contention that the district court imposed a sanction for AECOM’s opposing
    Centennial’s amendment to its complaint. Nor have we found support elsewhere
    in the record. Also, the record does not support the contention that the court
    believed that AECOM’s attorney had misrepresented a scheduling conflict. After
    -24-
    counsel told the court that she had a conflicting trial setting in state court, the
    district court contacted the state judge, who said that another trial had priority so
    the potential conflict would not materialize.
    As for AECOM’s motion to continue, the district court’s sanction included
    Centennial’s attorney fees to oppose the motion because the court characterized
    the motion as “in effect a motion for a stay of or to delay [ongoing] discovery.”
    Aplt. App., Vol. II at 1399. AECOM’s opening brief does not challenge that
    characterization. And the characterization is on its face reasonable because the
    court had previously made it clear that the trial date was set in concrete and the
    motion to continue was filed as AECOM was obstructing discovery necessary for
    Centennial to be prepared for that trial date. The continuance motion was
    apparently designed solely to relieve AECOM of its burden to comply with its
    discovery obligations.
    6.     Miscellaneous Inadequately Presented Arguments
    AECOM argues that the district court abused its discretion by imposing
    both evidentiary and monetary sanctions. But AECOM’s opening brief fails to
    point to anything in the record supporting its claim that the district court imposed
    evidentiary sanctions. In any event, nothing in Rule 37 precludes a district court
    from imposing both evidentiary and monetary sanctions. See Fed. R. Civ. P.
    37(b)(2)(C) (payment of expenses is required “[i]nstead of or in addition to” the
    sanctions enumerated in Rule 37(b), which include evidentiary sanctions).
    -25-
    AECOM asserts that the district court “awarded substantial fees for
    numerous tasks that were not related to discovery or . . . supposed violations of
    the [discovery orders],” and therefore were not permissible under Rule 37. Aplt.
    Br. at 38. In support of this assertion it cites, without any further explanation,
    five pages of the appendix, each of which is a page from Centennial’s billing
    records containing multiple entries. This “effort” by AECOM does not suffice to
    present any issue for review in this court. A party cannot impose on the court the
    burden to search for error. We have no obligation or inclination to examine each
    entry and assess, without any guidance from AECOM, whether it reflects work
    compensable under Rule 37. See Reedy, 
    660 F.3d at 1275
     (“Issues not adequately
    briefed will not be considered on appeal.”).
    AECOM contends that the district court should not have awarded fees
    because Centennial failed to confer on the issues. But the magistrate judge’s
    April 27 Order found that Centennial “ha[d] made multiple good faith attempts to
    get [AECOM] to adequately respond to its discovery requests” and that
    “[AECOM] ha[d] hindered those attempts at every turn.” Aplt. App., Vol. I at
    487. The record supports the finding and AECOM’s brief does not even attempt
    to point to contrary evidence or otherwise to rebut the judge’s findings.
    AECOM’s opening brief also asserts that its failure to admit matters in
    response to a request for admissions “cannot be used as a basis for the District
    -26-
    Court’s sanctions on June 17, 2010.” Aplt. Br. at 36. But the brief fails to
    identify a sanction imposed on that date, and we have found none.
    C.    Motion to Supplement the Record
    AECOM has filed a motion with this court seeking to file a supplemental
    appendix. We deny the motion because every document in the proposed
    supplemental appendix is either a duplicate of a document already contained in
    the record or was never presented to the district court.
    III.   CONCLUSION
    We AFFIRM the district court’s order awarding attorney fees.
    -27-