Lower Negotiated Hourly Rate Helped Salt Reasonableness Of Fee Award.
In Montoya v. Belk, Case No. D072275 (4th Dist., Div. 1 Mar. 23, 2018) (unpublished), defendant won a SLAPP motion and then sought $20,108 in mandatory “reasonable” fees, with the trial judge awarding $16,396 instead. On appeal, plaintiffs challenged this as an abuse of discretion, but did not prevail. Like the trial court, the appellate court decided “rough justice” was done as far as amount of fees awarded: the defense’s request for a multiplier was rejected such that the lower negotiated hourly rate with its client ($400 versus $550 for primary attorney work) was found reasonable so as to make amends for any claimed reductions based upon inefficiencies or upon the assertion that the SLAPP motion was only “cookie cutter” in nature.