$6,900 Was The Sanctions Order Amount. In Kitami v. Sabrah, Case No. A164399 (1st Dist., Div. 2 Dec. 13, 2022) (unpublished), plaintiff was hit with an adverse $6,900 discovery sanctions order. But that order was after the case had been removed to federal court. As a result, it had to be reversed for lack […]
2022 Rates Were Lower Because Of Discounts And Increased Write-Offs. U.S. law firm leaders informed Wells Fargo Legal Specialty Group that their firms will increase hourly rates by an average of 7-8% in 2023, before discounting. For 2022, rates were lower because of bigger discounts and increased write-offs.
$25,000 Sanctions Order Was Not Subject To Review. In Marriage of Freeman, Case No. B311411 (2d Dist., Div. 6 Dec. 6, 2022) (unpublished; opinion after rehearing), ex-wife was peeved she was assessed with Family Code section 2071 sanctions to the tune of $25,000. However, her challenges could not be entertained because she did not
Plaintiffs’ Lack Of Success At Trial Does Not Demonstrate That They Acted Unreasonably Or In Bad Faith In Denying Requests For Admissions Propounded By Defendants. In Walter v. Estate Strategies, Case No. B280172 (2d Dist., Div. 6 December 5, 2022) (unpublished), defendants moved for and were awarded $1,000,981.50 in costs of proof sanctions, under
Statutory Basis Supported Plaintiff’s Recovery of Attorney Fees Directly From Subcontractor. In Nassif v. Mission Pools of Escondido, Case No. G060433 (4th Dist., Div. 3 December 5, 2022) (unpublished), swimming pool contractor and subcontractor were sued for substandard work relating to the design and construction of a swimming pool. Pursuant to the global
Son Wrongfully Obtained Decedent’s Personal Property And Sought A Greek House Which Was Found To Belong To The Overall Estate. The Probate Code has many fee-shifting provisions, most of which are discretionary. They provide great leeway to the probate court in fashioning an award, given that the probate court is one of equity to
Most Prudent Course Is To Treat It As a Non-reimbursable “Overhead” Expense. We commend practitioners to read Nicole Nuzzo’s article “The Credit Card Conundrum: Passing Credit Card Processing Fees On To Client,” published in the December 2022 issue of Orange County Lawyer at pages 56-59. In this article, she concludes it is an open
He Had A Distinguished Legal And Judicial Career, Along With Writing On Important Subjects. It is with sadness that we report that Retired Justice Richard D. Fybel recently passed away. He had a distinguished career at Morrison & Foerster LLP, was on the Orange County Superior Court bench for around 2 years, and then
