Keeping Things In Proportion . . .
Just to stress that proportionality is not necessarily the key for winning FEHA plaintiffs, see the result in Young v. Mountain Empire Unified School Dist., Case No. D061228 (4th Dist., Div. 1 July 15, 2013) (unpublished).
What is? Answer: probably justice, in the eyes of the lower and reviewing courts.
In this one, former high school principal won an unlawful retaliation suit under FEHA against school district and other defendants based on allegations of sexual advances by a superintendent. In the end, plaintiff won $150,000 in noneconomic damages.
The lower court awarded $439,645 in attorney’s fees under FEHA, based on a $475 hourly rate plus a 1.6 multiplier to the lodestar. No problem, sustained on appeal.