Trope Prohibition At Issue. In Catanzarite Law Corp. v. Michelman & Robinson, Case No. G048540 (4th Dist., Div. 3 Feb. 19, 2015) (unpublished), two defendant law firms SLAPP-ed a plaintiff law firm suing the defendants in a suit by which plaintiff claimed the other firms interfered with plaintiff’s contingency fee agreement between ex-clients […]
Fees Clause Was Broadly Worded, Former Attorneys Represented Client In Seven Suits, and Section 998 Rejection Gave Rise to Expert Witness Fee Award. This next opinion, Calvo Fisher & Jacob LLP v. Lujan, Case No. A139863 (1st Dist., Div. 2 Feb. 19, 2015) (published), is must reading for both litigants and attorneys involved
Costs and sanctions are generally discretionary matters, even if the record might show a different conclusion could have been reached. Appellate courts are loathe to disturb a trial court’s conclusion in such matters, as Sdun v. Patterson, Case No. C070623 (3d Dist. Feb. 18, 2015) (unpublished) aptly illustrates. There, plaintiffs won a
Trial Court Did Reduce Hourly Rate And Only Awarded Fees For Trial Attorney Work. In Yoo v. Song, Case No. B256229 (2d Dist., Div. 7 Feb. 17, 2015) (unpublished), an ex-employee of defendants sued for unpaid overtime, statutory penalties under Labor Code sections 203 and 226, pay for meal/rest periods under Labor Code section
Lower Court Award of $5 Million Out of Requested $16 Million Remanded. Jones v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Case No, B243333 (2d Dist., Div. 7 Feb. 17, 2015) (unpublished) involved a trial court’s substantial reduction of requested fees by class counsel in an Unruh Act case involving alleged discrimination in making loans by
Tips Are Broad in Nature, But Also Guide California Practice. We can tell you that Randy Evans and Shari Klevens of McKenna Long have provided some guidance to U.S. lawyers seeking to enforce fee retainer arbitration provisions in their recent Daily Report article entitled “Arbitration Provisions in Fee Agreements.” Here are the
LLC Operating Agreement Clause Was Broad and Post-Judgment Activity Recovery Broadened Under 1992 Amendment. In Fiscal Funding Co., Inc. v. Dones, Case No. A140460 (1st Dist., Div. 3 Feb. 13, 2015) (unpublished), Fiscal Funding brought a writ petition to unsuccessfully challenge an arbitrator’s decision to disqualify an attorney, who happened to be the
No Fees Clause In Express Warranty Provisions, With Fees Clauses In Documents With A Different Lender Party. Under Civil Code section 1717, you must have a contractual or third-party beneficiary/subrogation/successor relationship of some sort in order to press for fee recovery. These crucial relationships were missing in MGM Equipment Leasing Co., LLC v.
Public Entity Properly Denied Fees/Costs Under Section 1038 By Simply Pointing To Entirety Of Record. Public entities seeking to recover fees and costs under Code of Civil Procedure section 1038—a fee-shifting section allowing such entities to recoup fees and costs if they can demonstrate a suit was brought in bad faith or without
Petition for Rehearing Was Correct Clarification Vehicle, But Filed Too Late. The Fourth District, Division 3, in an opinion following rehearing, came to the same result in Ducoing Management, Inc. v. Superior Court, Case No. G050457 (4th Dist., Div. 3 Feb. 10, 2015) (published), a writ proceeding which involved Presiding Justice O’Leary, Justice
