Judge's Ruling On Fees Against Deters Law
Judge's Ruling On Fees Against Deters Law
Judge's Ruling On Fees Against Deters Law
This case is before the Court on Defendants’ motions for sanctions and attorney
fees (Docs. 56, 59-61, 78, 79), and the parties’ responsive memoranda (Docs. 64, 68, 70,
I. BACKGROUND
This Court has previously discussed the factual background of this case. (Doc. 48
Defendants are the five major healthcare systems in the Cincinnati area: Christ Hospital,
Setting the factual background aside, however, this Order is focused solely on the
tortuous procedural history instigated by Plaintiffs’ counsel, Deters Law and “the owner
of Deters Law,” Glenn Feagan (collectively, “Deters Law”). See Beckerich v. St.
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Elizabeth Med. Ctr., Inc., No. 1:21-cv-576 (S.D. Ohio Sept. 16, 2021), Doc. 17 at 10:17.
Between August 23 and 25, 2021, Deters Law filed seven class action lawsuits in
state and federal court. 1 Specifically, Deters Law filed one lawsuit in the Southern
District of Ohio, asserting one antitrust claim against St. Elizabeth Medical Center (“St.
Elizabeth”) and the Ohio Defendants. Another lawsuit, brought against St. Elizabeth
only, was filed in Kentucky state court, though it was later removed to federal court in the
Eastern District of Kentucky. And the remaining five lawsuits were brought against each
of the Ohio Defendants individually, and were filed in Ohio state court, though three
In all seven of these the lawsuits, Deters Law moved for a restraining order,
seeking to stop the Ohio Defendants’ and St. Elizabeth’s COVID-19 vaccine policies
from going into effect. However, on August 29, 2021, after receiving an unfavorable
ruling in one of the state cases, Deters Law voluntarily dismissed all seven lawsuits. 3
1
The Court notes that Mr. Feagan is on all the pleadings of the Ohio cases, both state and
federal. But Mr. Feagan does not appear to be admitted to the Kentucky State Bar, and is not on
the pleadings of any Kentucky cases. Rather, the Kentucky cases were filed by Anthony Romeo
of Deters Law. The Court reiterates, however, that Mr. Feagan is the owner of Deters Law.
2
The seven lawsuits include: Beckerich v. St. Elizabeth Med. Ctr., Inc., No. 1:21-cv-548 (S.D.
Ohio filed Aug. 25, 2021); Beckerich v. St. Elizabeth Med. Ctr., Inc., No. 2:21-cv-100 (E.D. Ky.
removed Aug. 24, 2021); Aldridge v. Mercy Health Cincinnati, LLC, No. A2102965 (Hamilton
Cnty. C.P. filed Aug. 23, 2021); Alexander v. Cincinnati Children’s Hosp. Med. Ctr., No. 1:21-
cv-545 (S.D. Ohio removed Aug. 25, 2021); Allen v. TriHealth, Inc., No. A2102964 (Hamilton
Cnty. C.P. filed Aug. 23, 2021); Durrough v. Christ Hosp., No. 1:21-cv-549 (S.D. Ohio removed
Aug. 26, 2021); and Bezier v. UC Health, LLC, No. 1:21-cv-551 (S.D. Ohio removed Aug. 25,
2021).
3
Entry Denying Pls.’ Mot. Temp. Restraining Order, Aldridge, No. A2102965 (Hamilton Cnty.
C.P. Aug. 27, 2021).
2
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On September 3, 2021, Deters Law resumed its litigations against the Ohio
Defendants and St. Elizabeth by filing two more lawsuits, this time in federal court
exclusively. Deters Law filed one class action suit in the Eastern District of Kentucky
against St. Elizabeth (the “EDKY case”). 4 And Deters Law filed another class action suit
in the Southern District of Ohio (the “OHSD case”), combining all claims against the
Ohio Defendants, as well as its antitrust claim against Saint Elizabeth. 5 In both cases,
Deters Law once again moved for emergency relief, seeking to stop any COVID-19
vaccine policies from going into effect. The EDKY case was randomly assigned to the
Honorable David L. Bunning; the OHSD case was randomly assigned to the undersigned.
Deters Law proceeded in the EDKY case, litigating their motion for temporary
Bunning issued a well-reasoned order denying Plaintiffs’ request for emergency relief in
the EDKY case against St. Elizabeth. Beckerich v. St. Elizabeth Med. Ctr., 563 F. Supp.
3d 633, 637 (E.D. Ky. 2021), reconsideration denied, No. 2:21-cv-105-DLB-EBA, 2021
The proceedings in the OHSD case, however, did not progress so seamlessly.
Rather, in the OHSD case, on September 10, 2021, pursuant to Local Rule 65, the
Court held an informal teleconference with the parties to set an expedited briefing
4
Beckerich v. St. Elizabeth Med. Ctr., Inc., No. 2:21-cv-00105 (E.D. Ky. filed Sept. 3, 2021).
5
Beckerich v. St. Elizabeth Med. Ctr., Inc., No. 1:21-cv-00576 (S.D. Ohio filed Sept. 3, 2021).
3
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injunction. 6 After an expedited briefing schedule was established, Deters Law requested
a hearing to present expert testimony. This Court indicated that, given the emergent
nature of the Plaintiffs’ request, the Court would determine the necessity for a hearing
after briefing. In the interim, however, the Court permitted Plaintiffs to supplement their
motion, in order to file any supporting evidence. But Deters Law was unhappy with this
Court’s decision. Deters Law was also unhappy that the OHSD case was randomly
assigned to this Judge. 7 So, later that same day, Deters Law voluntarily dismissed the
OHSD case.
On September 14, 2021, Deters Law refiled their combined class action against the
Ohio Defendants in state court, but dropped the antitrust claim and St. Elizabeth from the
complaint. Unsurprisingly, the Ohio Defendants removed the case to federal court.
Again, the case—i.e., now the present case—was randomly assigned to the undersigned.
The Court, again, set an expedited briefing schedule. The Court, again, provided
Although Deters Law initially challenged the case’s removal to federal court,
Deters Law ultimately abandoned that challenge and elected to proceed before this Judge.
On September 30, 2021, this Court denied Plaintiffs’ motion for a temporary restraining
6
Transcript of Proceedings, Beckerich, No. 1:21-cv-00576 (S.D. Ohio Sept. 16, 2021), Doc. 17.
7
See Eric Deters, The Bulldog Show, Bulldog Show 1 | September 13, 2021, YouTube (Sep. 13,
2021), https://youtu.be/Orxmwq2b5mk?t=570.
4
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After this Court denied Plaintiffs’ motion, Defendants filed motions to dismiss and
motions for sanctions. On January 27, 2022, Plaintiffs moved to dismiss the complaint,
stating that they, “in essence,” received a ruling on their case via the Supreme Court’s
ruling in Biden v. Missouri, 142 S. Ct. 647, 211 L.Ed.2d 433 (2022). (Docs. 75, 76). 8
The Court construed Plaintiffs’ motion as a notice of dismissal pursuant to Federal Rule
of Civil Procedure 41(a)(1)(A)(i) and dismissed the case with prejudice pursuant to Rule
41(a)(1)(B). (Doc. 77). However, the Court explicitly retained jurisdiction over the
pending motions for sanctions, which jurisdiction now includes additional motions for
Fed. R. Civ. P. 11(b) details a party’s obligation when presenting the court with a
pleading, written motion, or other paper. By signing a paper presented to the Court, an
attorney certifies that “it is not being presented for any improper purpose, such as to
harass, cause unnecessary delay, or needlessly increase the cost of litigation.” Fed. R.
Civ. P. 11(b)(1). Once the Court determines Rule 11(b) was violated, after notice and a
reasonable opportunity to respond, “the court may impose an appropriate sanction on any
attorney, law firm, or party that violated the rule or is responsible for the violation.” Fed.
R. Civ. P. 11(c)(1). “Absent exceptional circumstances, a law firm must be held jointly
8
Pursuant to that Order granting Plaintiffs’ motions to dismiss (Doc. 77), all motions (Docs. 21,
49, 51, 52, 53, 54, 57) except those related to sanctions or fees shall be terminated as moot.
5
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Any sanctions imposed “must be limited to what suffices to deter repetition of the
“The sanction may include nonmonetary directives; an order to pay a penalty into court;
or, if imposed on motion and warranted for effective deterrence, an order directing
payment to the movant of part or all of the reasonable attorney’s fees and other expenses
directly resulting from the violation.” Id. “[A]lthough it is clear that Rule 11 is not
effective deterrence sometimes requires compensating the victim for attorney fees arising
from abusive litigation.” Rentz v. Dynasty Apparel Indus., Inc., 556 F.3d 389, 400 (6th
Cir. 2009).
B. 28 U.S.C. § 1927
any case unreasonably and vexatiously may be required by the court to satisfy personally
the excess costs, expenses, and attorneys’ fees reasonably incurred because of such
conduct.” “[Section] 1927 sanctions require a showing of something less than subjective
bad faith, but something more than negligence or incompetence.” Red Carpet Studios
Div. of Source Advantage, Ltd. v. Sater, 465 F.3d 642, 646 (6th Cir. 2006) (citation
omitted). Sanctions under this section are warranted when an attorney objectively “falls
short of the obligations owed by a member of the bar to the court and which, as a result,
causes additional expense to the opposing party.” Rentz, 556 F.3d at 396. “[A]n attorney
the risk that his actions will needlessly multiply proceedings.” Id. (citation omitted).
6
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“[S]anctions under 28 U.S.C. § 1927 may be imposed only on individual attorneys, and
not law firms.” BDT Prod., Inc. v. Lexmark Int’l, Inc., 602 F.3d 742, 757 (6th Cir. 2010).
III. ANALYSIS
Defendants seek sanctions and attorney fees against Deters Law and Mr. Feagan,
individually. 9 (Docs. 56, 59-61, 78, 79). Defendants mainly argue that sanctions and
fees are warranted because: (1) Deters Law and Mr. Feagan engaged in abusive litigation
tactics, including forum- and judge-shopping; and (2) Deters Law and Mr. Feagan filed a
frivolous, meritless, and harassing complaint lacking in any legal or factual support.
In response, Deters Law and Mr. Feagan argue that sanctions should not issue
because: (1) they conducted a reasonable investigation before filing; (2) their claims were
not meritless; and (3) the litigation was not motivated to harass Defendants. (Docs. 64,
82). Mr. Feagan and Deters Law rely, in large part, on Judge Bunning’s order denying
sanctions in the EDKY case. See Beckerich v. St. Elizabeth Med. Ctr., No. 2:21-cv-105,
9
The Court continues to include Mr. Feagan by reference to Deters Law but, for purposes of the
Analysis, will also reference Mr. Feagan individually since § 1927 sanctions may only be
imposed against an individual attorney.
10
Although Judge Bunning declined to sanction Deters Law in the EDKY case, the procedural
background of the EDKY case is entirely distinguishable from the present case. Specifically,
Deters Law voluntarily dismissed only one case against St. Elizabeth in the Eastern District of
Kentucky (which case was removed to federal court), before refiling the case about a week later
and proceeding without delay. Conversely, prior to proceeding in the present case, Deters
Law and Mr. Feagan voluntarily dismissed seven cases against the Ohio Defendants,
including five cases in this federal court (three of which were removed). Deters Law
further publicly confessed that dismissal of the OHSD case was for the purpose of judge
shopping.
7
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At the outset, this Court definitively states that it declines to consider sanctioning
Deters Law or Mr. Feagan for reasons relating to their investigation before filing, the
necessary when, as here, Deters Law and Mr. Feagan have demonstrated a far more
That is, the Court finds sanctions must issue against Deters Law and Mr.
Feagan pursuant to Rule 11, and against Mr. Feagan individually pursuant to 28 U.S.C.
§ 1927, based solely on their abuse of the judicial system through their strategic
engaging in confessed judge shopping. 11 Deters Law and Mr. Feagan have neither
denied such conduct, nor offered any justification for it. Their improper practices
created needless delay, effort, and expense for the opposing parties and the Court.
Such conduct undermines the judicial system as a whole and must be deterred.
Specifically, over the course of three days, beginning on August 23, 2021, Deters
Law filed seven complaints and motions for emergency relief, six of which were filed by
Mr. Feagan on behalf of Deters Law (see fn. 2, supra), and all of which were prompted,
11
The Court does not sanction counsel-of-record, Alan Statman. Mr. Statman has not signed any
pleadings or motions in this case. Mr. Statman was a retained “trial attorney” and “not part of
Deters Law.” Transcript of Proceedings, Beckerich, No. 1:21-cv-00576 (S.D. Ohio Sept. 16,
2021), Doc. 17 at 9:24-10:1.
12
The Court recognizes that, in different iterations of their complaints, Deters Law and Mr.
Feagan modified some of their causes of action. But the underlying relief sought in all their
causes was effectively the same: to stop Defendants’ COVID-19 vaccine policies from going
into effect.
8
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words, Deters Law and Mr. Feagan sought the same relief, arising from effectively the
same alleged violations, against the same entities, and yet Deters Law and Mr. Feagan
deliberately brought these suits in separate filings, across three different state and federal
courts. Deters Law and Mr. Feagan then subsequently dismissed those seven suits after
But these dismissals were yet another strategic decision, made for improper
purposes. Because, just days later, Deters Law and Mr. Feagan once again refiled these
claims—this time electing not to do so in the state court that previously ruled against
them. Rather, Deters Law filed their effectively redundant actions in federal court—the
EDKY case and the OHSD case. Deters Law litigated the EDKY case, but Deters Law
and Mr. Feagan elected to once again dismiss the OHSD case. And again, this dismissal
was prompted by Deters Law and Mr. Feagan’s intent to manipulate the outcome of the
proceedings. Indeed, as this Court noted in a prior Order, Eric Deters himself
confessed publicly that dismissing the OHSD case was done for the express purpose
of ‘judge-shopping’—i.e., refiling a suit in hopes that, upon refiling, the case will be
randomly assigned to a different judge, who the litigant believes will be more likely
13
Eric Deters, who is “permanently retired” from practicing law in Ohio and suspended for
disciplinary reasons from practicing law in Kentucky, is the office manager of Deters Law. See,
e.g., https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2021/08/10/eric-deters-pay-6-500-fine-ordered-
ohio-supreme-court/5555502001/.
9
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And, indeed, days later, Deters Law and Mr. Feagan once again filed their case,
this time electing to go back to state court and thereby avoiding having their case decided
court, at which point Deters Law and Mr. Feagan found themselves before this Judge
once again. And, eventually, the case was voluntarily dismissed after their motion for a
In short, there is no question that Deters Law and Mr. Feagan knowingly
filed redundant cases across multiple forums. There is no question that Deters Law
and Mr. Feagan dismissed those cases to avoid further unfavorable outcomes, and
then refiled in different forums for the sole purpose of taking a second bite at the
apple. And there is no question that Deters Law and Mr. Feagan engaged in
confessed judge shopping. This conduct is unquestionably improper for any officer
of the court. 14 McGirr v. Rehme, 891 F.3d 603, 614 (6th Cir. 2018) (“There is a
judicial resources, and in preventing further confusion and disruption in this litigation.”).
14
See, e.g., In re Fieger, 191 F.3d 451 (6th Cir. 1999) (upholding sanctions against attorney who
filed thirteen lawsuits, then stated in press interviews that he dismissed twelve of the suits “so
that he could select the judge”); Tennessee v. Gibbons, No. 3:16-CV-00718, 2017 WL 4535947,
at *4 (M.D. Tenn. Oct. 10, 2017) (quotation omitted) (collecting cases) (criticizing “blatantly
expressed” judge shopping); Landau v. Viridian Energy PA LLC, 274 F. Supp. 3d 329, 339 (E.D.
Pa. 2017) (“The practice of judge-shopping raises serious questions of professional ethics and
undermines trust in the court’s impartiality. Some consequence should follow.”); Vaqueria Tres
Monjitas, Inc. v. Rivera Cubano, 341 F. Supp. 2d 69, 73 (D.P.R. 2004) (D.P.R. 2005) (imposing
sanctions and explaining that voluntary dismissals should not be used “as a vehicle for judge-
shopping”) (collecting cases from across jurisdictions).
10
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Thus, the Court finds that, in violation of Rule 11(b), Deters Law and Mr.
Feagan caused unnecessary delay and needlessly increased the cost of litigation. The
Court further finds that, in violation of 28 U.S.C. § 1927, Mr. Feagan (at least)
knowingly disregarded the risk that his actions would needlessly and unreasonably
Additionally, the Court finds that Deters Law and Mr. Feagan received notice of
and had a reasonable opportunity to respond to the allegations of misconduct and the
requests for attorney fees. Deters Law and Mr. Feagan were sent Rule 11 letters, served
motions for sanctions, and served motions for attorneys’ fees and other reasonable
expenses objecting to their conduct. (E.g., Docs. 56-2, 56-3, 59-1, 61-3). This Court also
put Deters Law and Mr. Feagan on notice of concerns with their confessed judge
Yet, despite this notice and opportunity to be heard, Deters Law and Mr. Feagan
motions for sanctions and attorney fees, Deters Law and Mr. Feagan did not attempt
to justify their dismissals, did not attempt to justify their delay, and did not attempt
Thus, the Court finds that Deters Law and Mr. Feagan violated Rule 11(b), and
Mr. Feagan violated 28 U.S.C. § 1927. Deters Law and Mr. Feagan were given notice
and opportunity to be heard on the issue and failed to justify their actions. Sanctions
must issue.
11
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First, to protect this Court from Deters Law’s abuse of the judicial system through
its confessed judge shopping, and to stop Deters Law from engaging in similar behavior
in the future, the Court deems Deters Law a vexatious litigant and enjoins Deters Law
from filing or re-filing, in the Southern District of Ohio, any action that names the same
parties, arises from the same operative facts, and/or seeks the same relief as any ongoing
or voluntarily dismissed litigation, unless Deters Law accompanies its filings with a
certification from an attorney in good standing, who is licensed to practice in this Court,
and who has no affiliation with Deters Law, stating that the filing or re-filing of the suit is
not the product of forum- or judge-shopping and is not brought for any dilatory or
otherwise improper purposes. In the event that Deters Law files the case in state court
and the case is later removed to federal court in the Southern District of Ohio, Deters
Law will be required to file the aforementioned certification within seven (7) days of
removal. Failure to file certification in compliance with this Order will result in
Second, Deters Law and Mr. Feagan, jointly and severally, shall be responsible for
paying the Ohio Defendants’ “reasonable attorney’s fees and other expenses directly
resulting from” Deters Law and Mr. Feagan’s sanctionable conduct. Fed. R. Civ. P.
11(c)(4); id. at 11(c)(1) (“[a]bsent exceptional circumstances, a law firm must be held
15
Like Rule 11, an attorney sanctioned pursuant § 1927 may only be required to pay attorney
fees incurred “because of” the sanctionable conduct. Mr. Feagan’s sanctionable conduct is the
same under both Rule 11 and § 1927, so he alternatively owes these same fees under § 1927.
12
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As a result of Deters Law and Mr. Feagan’s gamesmanship, the Ohio Defendants
needlessly prepared to litigate seven cases before the instant action. Therefore, the
Court finds the following attorney fees and costs were a direct result of the violation of
Rule 11: (1) any fees and costs incurred from and relating to the motions for sanctions
and attorney fees; and (2) any fees and costs incurred prior to the filing of the complaint
in the present action (i.e., fees and costs incurred between August 23, 2021 and
September 14, 2021). 16 To ensure an accurate computation, the Court reserves ruling on
the specific amount of attorney fees, and any modification thereof, subject to the steps
The Court reiterates that the sanctions issued against Deters Law and Mr. Feagan
are not based on their investigation before filing or any perceived merit to the claims.
The Court sanctions Deters Law and Mr. Feagan because they needlessly delayed,
unreasonably multiplied, and increased the costs of the proceedings. This Court
cannot, and will not, condone Deters Law and Mr. Feagan’s gamesmanship, delay
16
By permitting fees and costs arising out of the voluntarily dismissed action (i.e., fees incurred
between August 23, 2021 and September 14, 2021), the Court specifically tailors this sanction to
address Deters Law and Mr. Feagan’s improper procedural antics. However, the Court will not
grant attorney fees and costs relating to the substantive litigation of the present case. As this
Court has previously noted, the Court is not punishing Deters Law and Mr. Feagan for
litigating their substantive claim, regardless of the merits. The Court sanctions only Deters
Law and Mr. Feagan’s improper conduct and procedural abuse of the judicial system.
13
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IV. CONCLUSION
1. The motions for sanctions and attorney fees (Docs. 56, 59, 60, 61, 78, 79)
are GRANTED.
3. Within fourteen (14) days of this Order, each Ohio Defendant requesting
attorney fees and costs must submit -one
- affidavit from counsel, which
affidavit includes as attachments the following:
ii. Costs incurred from and related to motions for sanctions and
attorney fees;
14
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Upon receipt of the required affidavits, the Court will determine whether
the requested fees and costs are reasonable and order the payment of said
fees and costs accordingly. Failure to timely submit the required
documentation, as specifically instructed, shall result in that defendant’s
waiver of fees and costs.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
15