Defense Motion Was Not Frivolous In Nature. Though successful defendants are entitled to reasonable attorney’s fees for winning a SLAPP motion, they are not exposed to fees unless their motion is found to be frivolous in nature. That frivolousness test was not met in Mandurrago v. City of Carmel-By-The-Sea, Case No. H036488 (6th […]
They Are Catching On, Along With Client Requests for Discounts. Co-contributor Mike, who is a member of the American Bar Association, found an interesting article by Debra Cassens Weiss dated January 17, 2012 in the ABA Journal Weekly Newsletter, where she summarized a recent American Lawyer report on alternative fee arrangements this way:
Disapproves Contrary Reasoning in Cooper v. Westbrook Torrey Hills. In our August 28, 2011 post, we mentioned that the California Supreme Court was considering a case on recoverability of consequential interest expense by an appellate litigant who prevailed after posting a letter of credit but sought to recover the interest expense incurred by
Reversal of Costs Based On Invalid Offer Occurred, While Another Cost Award Sustained Because 998 Offer Made In Good Faith/Reasonable in Nature. Our local Santa Ana appellate court decided Puerta v. Torres, 195 Cal.App.4th 1267, 1273 (2011), which invalidated a CCP § 998 offer because it did not include the acceptance provision required
“Big” Picture Was Considered By Family Judge, Especially Where Husband Had Substantial Assets And Outspent Wife By Almost Double In Dissolution Fees. As we predicted in our post of March 21, 2009, family law practitioners would use “big” picture language from Alan S. v. Superior Court, 172 Cal.App.4th 238 (2009) in arguing that
$78,250 Fee Award In Favor Of Individual Litigant Gets Reversed. For litigators of all ages, we have come to appreciate that the “hat” worn by a litigant frequently may play a determinative role in the course of a lawsuit. This next case we discuss exemplifies this very well. One individual defendant won
Dismissal of Recission Count Preclude Fee Recovery. The message from the next case is be careful of what claims you dismiss during the progress of a case on behalf of a client plaintiff. If you have a narrowly worded fees clause, dismissal of a contractually based claim (such as rescission) may end any
In Honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968.
U.S. Magistrate Judge’s Recommendations Has Some Nice “Fees on Fees” Hints. In a January 13, 2012 post of the Courthouse News Service, we are informed that U.S. District Judge Jack Weinstein accepted U.S. Magistrate Judge Roanne L. Mann’s recommendation that a civil rights plaintiff should be awarded $80,000 in attorney’s fees for prevailing
Reversal of Fortune on Appeal to Plaintiff Winning Substantial Jury Verdict and Substantial Attorney’s Fees Below. Acting Presiding Justice Bedsworth, as author for a 3-0 panel in Gardner v. Baby Trend, Inc., Case No. G043451 (4th Dist., Div. 3 Jan. 13, 2012) (unpublished), shows how reversal on the merits–even of a large substantial jury
