Author name: Marc Alexander

Deeds Of Trust, Fee Clause Interpretation: Third District Affirms $133,176.15 Fees And Costs Award To Lender Defeating Plaintiff’s Lawsuit For Wrongful Foreclosure, Concealment And Breach Of Contract

Cases: Deeds of Trust, Cases: Fee Clause Interpretation

Fee-Shifting Provisions In The Parties’ Loan Documents Entitled Prevailing Lender To Fees For Defending Foreclosure And Enforcing Plaintiff’s Debt Obligation, And Were Worded Broadly Enough To Encompass Both Contract And Tort Causes Of Action.             In Simon v. Wells Fargo Bank, Case No. C086688 (3d Dist. April 12, 2021) (unpublished), plaintiff sued Wells Fargo […]

Appealability, Experts, Section 998: 2/8 DCA Declines To Consider Plaintiff’s Arguments Against Trial Court’s PostJudgment Award To Prevailing Defendants Of Section 998 Expert Witness Fees

Cases: Appealability, Cases: Experts, Cases: Section 998

Plaintiff’s Failure To File A Notice Of Appeal On The PostJudgment Award Deprived Appellate Court Of Jurisdiction.             In Nash v. Romano, Case No. B303765 (2d Dist., Div. 8 April 12, 2021) (unpublished), plaintiff tenant sued her landlords after she broke her ankle while stepping on an allegedly unstable backyard paver.  The jury returned

In The News, SLAPP. . . . Carlsbad Councilwoman Cori Schumacher Ordered To Pay $47,191 To Two Prevailing Defendants When Her Social Media Civil Harassment Petition Was Dismissed Via A SLAPP Motion

Cases: SLAPP, In The News

Earlier, She Was Ordered To Pay $2,625 In Fees To A Third Prevailing Defendant.             Carlsbad Councilwoman Cori Schumacher, a former surfing champion, brought a civil harassment claim against Anthony Bona, Noel Breen, and Larry Posner for their outspoken criticism of her on social media.  Unfortunately, her petition was dismissed as to Mr. Posner in

Reasonableness Of Fees, Sanctions: 50% Fee Recovery Award To Prevailing Party Was No Abuse Of Discretion

Cases: Reasonableness of Fees, Cases: Sanctions

Denial Of $16,060 Sanctions Fee Request Was No Error Because It Was An Interim Ruling Not Impacting The Litigant’s Eventual Prevailing Party Status.             In Aquino v. Klein, Case No. B301186 (2d Dist., Div. 3 Apr. 8, 2021) (unpublished), a dispute between friends, who went into business and then had a falling out romantically, resulted

Class Actions: Class Action Objector’s Objection To Class Action Fees Was Sustained Until True Value Of Vouchers And Coupons Could Be Determined

Cases: Class Actions

Pragmatic Valuation of Class Action Settlement Is Key In Voucher/Coupon Cases.             Rael v. The Children’s Place, Inc., 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 63117 (S.D. Cal. Mar. 31, 2021) is a situation where class action counsel’s fee award was denied without prejudice until the true value of a voucher and coupon settlement could be determined under

Fee Clause Interpretation, Landlord/Tenant: $93,913.85 Fee Award In Favor Of Residential Defendant Affirmed On Appeal

Cases: Fee Clause Interpretation, Cases: Landlord/Tenant

Conversion Claim Arose From The Lease, With Other Arguments Forfeited On Appeal.             Where appellants fail to make arguments at the trial court level or in an appellant’s opening brief, they may be subject to having their challenges forfeited on appeal.  That largely happened in Ghannoum v. Sevier, Case No. B304026 (2d Dist., Div. 2

Allocation, Deadlines: $172,000 In Trial/Appellate Fees To One Prevailing Defendant And $36,890 In Appellate Fees To Other Prevailing Defendants Affirmed On Appeal

Cases: Allocation, Cases: Deadlines

Parties Orally Stipulated To A Postponement Of Appellate Fee Deadlines And Work Was Inextricably Intertwined.             In Ebrahimpour v. Pasco, Case No. B303983 (2d Dist., Div. 2 Apr. 7, 2021) (unpublished), plaintiffs lost a corporate opportunity dispute where there was a memorandum of agreement with a contractual fees clause against multiple defendants.  On remand after

Reasonableness Of Fees: In Liquidated Damages Dispute Won By Defendant, Trial Court’s Award Of $1,778,500 In Fees Under Contract Clause, About $350,000 Less Than The Request, Was No Abuse Of Discretion

Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

Although Some Math Mistakes Were Made By Lower Court, Reduction Was Justified By The Record.             In Micrel, LLC v. Zinn, Case Nos. A157136/A158069 (1st Dist., Div. 1 Apr. 6, 2021) (unpublished), defendant won a battle over whether a nondefamation liquidated provision seeking $1.3 million in damages was reasonable.  The defense then sought $2,128,534.50 in

Liens for Attorney Fees, Probate: 4/3 DCA Affirms Probate Court’s Denial Of Fee Petition By Attorney Who Represented Client In Civil Litigation Prior To Client’s Death

Cases: Liens for Attorney Fees, Cases: Probate

Client’s Death Did Not Transform Completed Civil Litigation Into A Probate Administration Task For Which The Probate Court Could Award Fees, Nor Did Client’s Death Waive Requirement That Attorney’s Charging Lien Had To Be Adjudicated.             In Belcher v. Bakkers, Case No. G058893 (4th Dist., Div. 3 April 5, 2021) (unpublished), attorney seeking payment

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