THOMAS GRAY HULL, United States District Judge
This was a tax refund case in which the plaintiffs sought refunds of the federal income taxes, penalties, and interest assessed by the Internal Revenue Service with regard to their charitable contributions to a local hospital. In an Order of September 28, 1999, the Court granted the plaintiffs summary judgment and, in an Order of January 24, 2000, it allowed them reasonable attorney fees and costs under 26 U.S.C. § 7430. The plaintiffs have now submitted a well-documented application for attorney fees in the amount of $49,098.50, paralegal fees of $2,192.00, accountant fees of $16,850.00, expert fees of $630.00 and other costs of $6,653.56, for a total claim of $75,424.06. The United States has raised several objections to their application which will be examined in turn.
THE FEES FOR ATTORNEYS
The United States first contends that the attorney fees and expenses sought by the plaintiffs are excessive under 26 U.S.C. § 7430(c)(1)(B)(iii) and that the case was seriously "overstaffed." It points out that the plaintiffs seek compensation for their Nashville and local attorneys at rates well above the statutory hourly rate of $125.00. of the members of the firm of Waller Lansden Dortch Davis, PLLC (Waller Lansden), attorney J. Leigh Griffith is billing at a rate of $210/hr., Charles A. Trost at a rate of $250/hr., and Nancy Jones at a rate of $210/hr. The associates billed within the statutory limit. The work of local counsel, Walter Lee Davis, is billed at $200/hr.
The plaintiffs respond that the number of different attorneys working on the case was not excessive in light of the fact that the administrative and legal proceedings lasted over four years during which time the Waller Lansden firm experienced normal personnel turnover. They also argue that special factors justify an award of fees in excess of the statutory hourly rate, particulary the unavailability of tax expertise in the Tri-Cities area where a search of Martindale-Hubbell revealed that no attorney possessed an LL.M in Taxation. In the Waller Lansden firm, attorneys Griffith, Trost, Stuart and Hyatt all have such a degree. In addition, attorneys Griffith and Trost are both Fellows of the American College of Tax Counsel and listed under "Taxation" in Best Lawyers in America.
Section 7430(c)(1)(B)(iii) provides that attorney fees shall not be in excess of $125.00 per hour unless the court determines that an increase in the cost of living or a special factor, such as the limited availability of qualified attorneys justifies a higher rate. The Court recognizes that the Waller Lansden firm has special expertise not readily found in Upper East Tennessee, but is not convinced that this single-issue lawsuit required such expertise. Attorney J. Leigh Griffith has graciously recalculated the attorney fees claimed by this firm to reflect the different statutory limits available during the years of its representation of the plaintiffs and has arrived at a total fee claim of $38,797.00 rather than $49,098.50. The Court FINDS that this lower fee is all that should be charged to the government.
THE FEES FOR NON-ATTORNEY PERSONNEL
The United States argues that time billed by non-attorney personnel including paralegals, secretaries and office staff is not recoverable under § 7430(c)(1)(B). The Waller Lansden firm billed one of its paralegals at $65/hr and two others at $85/hr. Attorney Davis billed for his office staff at a rate of $40/hr.
The plaintiffs direct the Court's attention to a 1994 Fourth Circuit decision, McConaughy v. United States, No. 93-2287, 1994 U.S. App. LEXIS 21423, 74 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 5932, which holds that reasonable paralegal fees and miscellaneous costs are appropriate in tax cases. The Waller Lansden firm advises that it used the services of paralegals whenever possible to minimize the plaintiffs' expenses. The Court FINDS that the paralegal fees sought by the Waller Lansden firm are reasonable and recoverable.
THE ACCOUNTING AND EXPERT FEES
The plaintiffs seek reimbursement for time billed by accountant Richard Linnen and appraiser Richard Rader. Mr. Linnen's fee is $125-$152 per hour. However, there is no way to tell from his total bill of $16,850.00 how many hours he expended on this case. The Court will reimburse the plaintiffs in the amount of $3000.00 for his work. Mr. Rader's rate is $120.00 per hour. He claims to have worked 5.25 hours on this case and submits a bill for $630.00. The Court will allow the plaintiff to recover $525.00 for his work.
OTHER EXPENSES
In the costs billed to the plaintiffs, the Waller Lansden firm has included expenses connected with legal research on LEXIS, telecopier charges, meals, Wolf Camera pictures. courier and delivery services, air travel expenses, telephone charges, and the costs of copies of pleadings and postage. Mr. Davis has charged for facsimile transmission, overnight delivery and mail charges. The United States insists that these are unrecoverable office overhead expenses.
The plaintiffs respond with case law indicating that such expenses as postage. mileage, long-distance telephone bills, travel expenses, etc. are recoverable under § 7430.
While this appears to be the case, the Court telegraphed in its earlier ruling that, while the plaintiffs did qualify for an award of attorney fees and other litigation costs, it did not wish to increase their tax windfall by a large fee award.
The Court will not require the government to reimburse the plaintiffs for these overhead expenses.
CONCLUSION
In light of the foregoing, the Court hereby awards the plaintiffs the following reimbursement for their legal fees and costs:
The services of Waller Lansden attorneys $38,797.00 Paralegal fees $ 2,192.00 The services of Walter Lee Davis, Jr. $ 1,848.25 The services of Richard Rader $ 525.00 The services of Richard Linen $ 3,000.00 Filing fees $ 210.00 Total: $46,572.25