Hearsay Evidence Could Be Credited By Analogy To A Family Law Case—Problematic, But OK Because Unpublished.
In Berry v. Pope Valley Union Elementary School Dist., Case No, A171352 (1st Dist., Div. 3 June 2, 2025) (unpublished), defendants won SLAPP motions and were awarded roughly $11,000 at the trial court level. Those rulings held up on appeal.
Plaintiff argued that defendants did not prevail, but they did partially prevail by eliminating six of eight claims and getting rid of punitive damages claims. Plaintiff argued that there should be an adverse inference if the defense did not provide detailed billing substantiation, but this is not a requirement under California law—although it can always be a credibility factor for trial judges to weigh. Finally, the defense argued that the fee claimant relied on hearsay substantiation, with the appellate court agreeing by relying on a family law case, after a trial, where the reviewing court said trial judge was not bound by technical rules of evidence, citing Frank v. Frank, 213 Cal.App.2d 135, 136 (1963). On this last point, because there was no trial involved and it was decided on declarations, us bloggers do not see how this should apply as the appellate court saw it—the reasoning is much too broad, because fee claimants need to make a competent showing based on declarations.