Chesny v. Marek

Alfred Chesny (plaintiff) sued police officers, including Marek (defendant), under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 over his decedent's death. The defendants made Chesny a $100,000 Rule 68 settlement offer, which he rejected; he ultimately won only $60,000 at trial. Rule 68 bars an offeree who rejects a settlement offer and later recovers less than the offer from collecting post-offer “costs.” Because § 1988 entitles a prevailing civil rights plaintiff to attorney's fees as part of costs, the trial court treated Chesny's post-offer attorney's fees as Rule 68 costs and denied them; Chesny appealed.