Professor in Age Bias Lawsuit to Appeal Ruling on Fees

Chicano studies professor Rodolfo Acuna, who won $326,000 in an age discrimination lawsuit against the University of California, said Tuesday he will appeal a federal judge’s decision to cut by about 80% the fees and expenses sought by his lawyers.

The lawyers for Acuna, a longtime professor at Cal State Northridge, had sought $2.4 million after he won his case against the University of California in 1995. U.S. District Judge Audrey B. Collins cut the amount to $500,000, ruling that Acuna’s legal team was overstaffed and was not successful on the lawsuit’s other major claims, Acuna attorney Moises Vazquez said.

Speaking at a news conference in front of the Royal Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles, Acuna repeated his charge that the judge’s decision to reduce the fees and expenses to his lawyer was part of her “anti-Mexican bias,” which he said was evident during the three-week trial in her courtroom.

Asked for a comment Tuesday, the judge declined.

After being turned down for a Chicano studies position at UC Santa Barbara, Acuna sued the UC system, blaming age, race and political bias for the decision.

Collins dismissed the race and political bias claims and let the trial proceed on age discrimination.

At the trial’s conclusion, a jury found in favor of Acuna.

The judge later awarded him $326,000, but also ruled he was not entitled to teach at UCSB.

The professor, known for his fiery rhetoric, claimed Collins’ action to reduce his attorneys’ fees and expenses was particularly troublesome since lawyers who represented the university in his case were paid in excess of $4 million.