Two Recent Opinions Show the Trend.
When appellate courts sanction someone for a frivolous appeal, we have noticed lately that the tally is going up even in fairly routine appeals. In Willis v. Page, Case No. B230638 (2d Dist., Div. 1 Feb. 28, 2012) (unpublished), the winning party on appeal was awarded $20,000 out of a requested $25,884.52 in sanctions for his opponent’s frivolous appeal. Similarly, in Marriage of Bhardwaj, Case No. A128171 et al. (1st Dist., Div. 5 Feb. 28, 2012) (unpublished), the appellate court awarded $60,000 to the winning party in three appeals, out of a requested $67,500. Looks like around $20,000 is the “going rate” for frivolous appeal sanctions in a routine matter.