New York Court of Appeals
In the Matter of Laura Thomasel v. Cesar Perales, as Commissioner of the New York…
November 26, 199178 N.Y.2d 561
Summary
The New York Court of Appeals reversed the Appellate Division and reinstated the Supreme Court's award of attorney's fees to petitioner against the State Department of Social Services, holding that a settlement without prejudice does not bar a 42 U.S.C. §1988 fee award when the federal claim is substantial and shares a common nucleus of operative fact with the state claims.