$28,712.50 Fee/Costs Award Was the Victim in This One.
Defendants probably felt pretty good after they SLAPPed plaintiff’s suit and won fees/cost of $28,712.50 under the SLAPP mandatory fee-shifting statute. The feeling was somewhat short lived, however.
The appellate court in Gonzales v. Gonzales Foundation, Case Nos. A123857/124346 (1st Dist., Div. 3 Apr. 25, 2011) (unpublished) reversed the SLAPP grant, which also resulted in a reversal of the fee/costs award. The appellate court also noted that plaintiff could move for fees/costs if he could demonstrate the SLAPP motion was frivolous or dilatory in nature, although it gave no opinion on whether this was the case. Reversal of fortune, to say the least.
Wheel of Fortune. Las Vegas. 1940 Arthur Rothstein, photographer.