Both Sides Appealed, Both Sides Did Not Gain Anything Upon Review.
In County of San Bernardino v. San Bernardino County Public Attorneys Assn., Case Mp/ E051576 (4th Dist., Div. 2 June 26, 2012) (unpublished), County lost a SLAPP motion and was assessed $49,500 through an adverse mandatory fee award (even though the defense had requested almost $67,500). Both sides appealed, but the award was sustained.
County argued that the fee substantiation was inadequate because only a spreadsheet of activities rather than contemporaneous fee records was utilized. No, the attorney’s declaration and summarization of services was sufficient because it showed the hours spent and for what purpose—although preferred, contemporaneous records are not required. (Best v. California Apprenticeship Council, 193 Cal.App.3d 1448, 1470 (1987).) Time entries did not need to be allocated between tasks (SLAPP versus non-SLAPP administrative jurisdiction issues) given the interrelationship of common issues involved in the SLAPP motion.
The defense challenge to the reduction of fees did not go far, because the appellate court did not see anything clearly wrong with the award and inferred the court determined the request was inflated when making reductions.