Author name: Marc Alexander

Sanctions/Special Fee Shifting Statute: 4/1 DCA Clarifies Scope Of “Revived” Code of Civil Procedure Section 128.5 Sanctions Statute

Cases: Sanctions, Cases: Special Fee Shifting Statutes

  Appellate Court Reverses Denial Of Section 128.5 Sanctions, But Affirms Fee Recovery To Plaintiff Under California Public Records Act.     San Diegans For Open Government v. City of San Diego, Case No. D068421 (4th Dist., Div. 1 June 7, 2016) (published) is a key decision on the timing, applicability, and scope of Code of […]

In The News . . . . Zillow To Settle Realtor.com Trade Secrets Suit

In The News

  Zillow Reported Mounting Legal Fees For 2016, Expected To Exceed $50 Million For The Year And Totaling Over $77 Million For The Last Two Years.     Just to show you how legal costs can be for well-known companies, take Zillow for example.  It legal fees for the 2015 and 2016 years are projected to

Insurance: California Supreme Court Rules—Do Brandt Attorney Fees Get To Be Considered In Punitive-To-Compensatory Damages Ratio On The Compensatory Side?

Cases: Fees as Damages, Cases: Insurance

  You Betcha, State Supreme Court Decided.     In Nickerson v. Stonebridge Life Ins. Co., Case No. S213873 (Cal. Supreme Court June 9, 2016), the California Supreme Court confronted the issue of whether attorney’s fees awarded to a prevailing plaintiff in a “bad faith” insurance lawsuit should be considered where attorney’s fees under Brandt v.

Family Law: Family Law Judge Did Not Err By Considering Substantial Infusions By Parent In Fashioning Pendente Lite Fee Award Under “Needs Based” Fee Statutes

Cases: Family Law

  However, Remand Required To See If Husband’s Fee Request Was Overinflated.     In Marriage of Rubanowitz, Case No. B257782 (2d Dist., Div. 7 June 7, 2016) (unpublished), husband and wife having seven children were enmeshed in a divorce proceeding which had some unusual facts:  (1) husband, who was an attorney, lost a major client

Liens For Attorney’s Fees/Equity: Los Angeles County Superior Court Appellate Division Decides That Rights Of Needy Tenants To Obtain Legal Representation In Unlawful Detainer Actions Prevented Offset Of Fee Award Against Subsequent Judgments Obtain

Cases: Equity, Cases: Liens for Attorney Fees

  Equities Were Weighted, Favoring No Offset Of Fee Award.      Crasnick v. Marquez and Diaz, Case No. BV 031459 (L.A. Superior Court Appellate Div. May 24, 2016 (published) (3-0 decision authored by Judge Ricciardulli), transmitted to 2d Dist. for consideration of transfer, No. B272469 involved an interesting judgment offset situation. There, a tenant in

Civil Rights: N.D. Cal. District Judge Awards $724,295 In Fees To Successful Civil Rights Plaintiff Awarded $10,000 In Compensatory Damages Under Settlement

Cases: Civil Rights

  Case Was Deemed Complex, With Plaintiff’s Attorneys Displaying Dexterity Along The Way.      In Gonzales v. City of San Jose, Case No. 5:13-cv-00695-BLF (N.D. Cal. May 26, 2016, Doc. 244), U.S. District Judge Beth Labson Freeman awarded plaintiff recovering $10,000 in an eve-of-trial settlement of a complex civil rights case—where a mother was arrested

Private Attorney General: Plaintiff Denied Fee Recovery As Catalyst In Nonconforming Singular Traffic Sign Case

Cases: Private Attorney General (CCP 1021.5)

  $70,000 Fee Request Rebuffed By Trial And Appellate Courts.     In Hillis v. City of Aliso Viejo, Case No. G051900 (4th Dist., Div. 3 June 2, 2016) (unpublished), plaintiff successfully contested a nonconforming traffic sign infraction against City, obtaining a dismissal of a criminal charge.  Plaintiff’s father asked the City to remove the offensive

Intellectual Property, POOF!, Celebrities: Ninth Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment In Favor Of Madonna, Producer Of The Song “Vogue,” And Others Based on De Minimis Copyright “Copying”

Cases: Celebrities, Cases: Intellectual Property, Cases: POOF!

  However, Attorney’s Fees Award For The Material Girl And Other Defendants Reversed Because Plaintiff’s Theory Was Not Objectively Unreasonable.   Source:  Wikipedia, Article “Madonna.”  Author: Olavtenbroek.   Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.     Well, VMG Salsoul, LLC v. Madonna Ciccone, Nos. 13-57104/14-55837 (9th Cir. June 2, 2016) (published) does involve the “Material Girl”

In The News . . . . Skadden Arps Obtains Half Of Requested Fees—Almost $660,00– In California Judge Automatic Pay Raise Dispute And Ford Drivers Class Reaps Over $843,000 In Fees For Hybrid Recalls

In The News

  L.A. Superior Court Judge Berle Awards Almost $660,000 In California Judges’ Dispute.     On June 1, 2016, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Elihu M. Berle granted plaintiff $659,759 in fees for prevailing in a case alleging that California’s controller at the time illegally withheld automatic raises from 3,000 active and retired California judges. 

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