St. Paul Fire & Marine Insurance v. United States

OPINION

KOZINSKI, Chief Judge.

After the parties filed a stipulation for dismissal with prejudice, defendant, the United States, moved for an award of attorney’s fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA), 28 U.S.C. § 2412(b) (Supp. V 1981).

Facts

Plaintiff sued under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, 33 U.S.C. § 1321(i)(l) (1976), to recover $1.2 million in oil cleanup costs. The complaint was filed on May 25, 1982, one day before the statute of limitations would have expired. Defendant responded within its allotted 60 days, simultaneously serving upon plaintiff a set of…