April 2014

Private Attorney General: Whistleblower Obtaining Substantial Jury Verdict In His Favor Did Not Confer Significant Public Benefit

Cases: Private Attorney General (CCP 1021.5)

  CCP § 1021.5 Fees Denied Because Benefit Was Personal in Nature.     Whistler and friends.  Library of Congress.      Plaintiff whistleblower, a Los Angeles County sheriff, must have mixed emotions in Hager v. County of Los Angeles, Case Nos. B238277/239897 (2d Dist., Div. 3 Apr. 11, 2014) (unpublished).      He won a substantial jury […]

Arbitration/Judgment Enforcement: Parties’ “High/Low” Pre-Arbitration Agreement Enforced Where Losing Party Honored Arrangement And Was Erroneously Denied Benefit of Judgment Satisfaction Acknowledgment Procedure

Cases: Arbitration, Cases: Judgment Enforcement

  Losing Party Played It Well All Along the Way.      Looks like the appellate courts have been facing a lot of post-judgment enforcement fee issues lately, as recent posts have demonstrated. Here is another one to add to the list.      Horath v. Hess, Case Nos. D063124/D063709 (4th Dist., Div. 1 Apr. 10, 2014)

Off Topic: Sonoma Risk Insurance Agency Expands Its Attorneys’ Fees Risk Insurance Suite Of Products

Off Topics

  Annual Coverage, Contractual Coverage, Statutory Coverage (Under Some Statutes), And Multiple/Possible Exposure Coverage Available. Because most standard insurance policies do not cover adverse attorney’s fees awards, we have informed you over the last few years about a suite of litigation insurance policies designed to protect plaintiffs and defendants from the risk of having to

Allocation/Estoppel/Fee Clause Interpretation/Section 1717/Reasonableness Of Fees: Real Estate Buyer’s Tort Claims Did Not Give Rise To Fee Exposure Under Narrowly-Worded Fees Clause

Cases: Allocation, Cases: Estoppel, Cases: Fee Clause Interpretation, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees, Cases: Section 1717

  However, Sellers Were Liable To Third-Party For Losing Their Contractual/Indemnity Claims, Which Were Intertwined And Needed No Apportionment.      Real estate buyer lost tort/statutorily-based nondisclosure claims to the sellers in a dispute where a purchase agreement had a fees clause mandating fees in an action brought “with respect to the subject matter of enforcement

Prevailing Party/Section 1717: Guarantor Of Arbitration Award Was Properly Hit With $85,500 In Attorney’s Fees

Cases: Prevailing Party, Cases: Section 1717

  Arbitration Award Winner Did Prevail In Subsequent Action, Despite Uncertainty As to Whether Fees Were Damages or Post-trial Costs.      Whyaduck Productions, Inc. v. Block, Case No. B245051 (2d Dist., Div. 7 Apr. 9, 2014) (unpublished) is a case which somewhat flummoxed the appellate court given a sparse record and the position of the

Appealability/Equity: Appellate Court Reverses Adverse Fee Judgment Based On Parties’ Settlement Stipulation

Cases: Appealability, Cases: Equity

  No Public Policy Concerns Militate Against Honoring Parties’ Settlement.      In GMAC Mortgage v. Sandoval, Case No. E059111 (4th Dist., Div. 2 Apr. 8, 2014) (unpublished), lenders won a declaratory relief action with respect to lien priority and were awarded attorney’s fees of $21,284.25 based on a trust deed fees clause. Defendants appealed only

Deeds of Trust/POOF!: Trial Court’s Judicial Imposition Of Lien On Future Third Party Tortfeasor Monetary Recovery, Including Fee And Costs Awards, Goes POOF! On Appeal

Cases: Deeds of Trust, Cases: POOF!

  Judicial Lien Imposition Found to be the Equivalent of an Improper Deficiency Judgment.      Borrower/former owner of San Diego property damaged by 2007 wildfires was nonjudicially foreclosed out of the property by a junior lienholder, which held the property for a couple of years before losing it to a foreclosing senior lienholder. Former owner

Judgment Enforcement: Judgment Creditor’s Acceptance Of A Cashier’s Check Constituted A Judgment Satisfaction Notwithstanding Filing Of Motion For Substantial Postjudgment Enforcement Fees

Cases: Judgment Enforcement

  Commercial Code Section on Cashier’s Check Tender Went Hand in Hand With Judgment Enforcement Provisions.       You knew this one would be fun given the first paragraph in Gray1 CPB, LLC v. SCC Acquisitions, Inc., Case No. G047429 (4th Dist., Div. 3 Apr. 9, 2014) (published): “You cross continents and spend years trying to

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