Trial and Appellate Court Rebuff Criminal Client’s Challenges to Retainers. In Faal v. Davis, Case No. B219520 (2d Dist., Div. 5 Oct. 14, 2010) (unpublished), a criminal lawyer represented a client later found guilty on major counts of the criminal case after having obtained a retainer of $250,000 for the criminal trial work and […]
$15,286 Fee Award Affirmed Against Limited Partners Joining Unsuccessful Petition to Wind Up Partnership. When a contractual fees clause covers “any dispute,” such broad language usually gives rise to fee entitlement. It did in the next case we look at. In LaRocca v Briasco, Case No. B217071 (2d Dist., Div. 8 Oct. 14,
Fourth District, Division 3 Disagrees with Dicta in Doe v. Luster. You know that this one was going to be interesting when Justice Moore, on behalf of a 3-0 panel of the Fourth District, Division Three, wrote: “This is one of the weakest anti-SLAPP motions this court has reviewed in some time, which is
MiraCosta College Trustee Questions Basis for Fee Request Given Attorney’s Client’s Position in the Lawsuit. As reported by Paul Sisson in an October 13, 2010 post in The North County (San Diego) Times, an attorney who successfully challenged on behalf of Carlsbad resident Leon Page a $1.6 million settlement between MiraCosta College and its
Third District Finds Advance Payment of Fee by Trustee for Trust Administration Work Was Proper. Some judges, like the lower court, in the next case we discuss are under a misapprehension that trust administration attorney’s fees have to always be approved by the court and cannot be advanced by the trustee. That is simply
Matter Remanded To Decide Sanctions for One Germane RFA. Appellate courts do scrutinize costs of proof sanctions under Code of Civil Procedure section 2033.420 carefully, as the next case demonstrates. The trial court in Windward Capital Management Co. v. Christenson, Case No. B210898 (2d Dist., Div. 2 Oct. 13, 2010) (unpublished) imposed costs
Declaratory Relief Action Denial Reversed re Class Action Fee Distribution. In Carder v. Patten, Faith & Sandford, Case No. B221940 (2d Dist., Div. 5 Oct. 12, 2010) (certified for publication), the appellate court reversed judgment entered against a plaintiff class action lawyer in a declaratory relief action he brought against other class action co-counsel
Zurich Financial Agrees to Class Action Settlement—With $90 Million Going to the Attorneys, Potentially. As reported by Carolyn Bandel in an October 7, 2010 post at Bloomberg’s businessweek.com, Zurich Financial Services, AG, Switzerland’s largest insurer, has agreed to settle a class action pending in Los Angeles County Superior Court for $455 million, with a
That Compares to $399,763.34 Spent in All of 2005 As reported by Brittany Levine in an article in the October 12, 2010 online edition of The Orange County Register, San Juan Capistrano has paid the law firm of Woodruff, Spradlin & Smart a total of $978,508.53 for 2010 through September of this year. (If
Award is Mentioned in Recent California Lawyer Article. As reported by Matthew Heller in an article in the October 2010 edition of the California Lawyer, iconic test pilot Chuck Yeager has brought some right of publicity lawsuits, obtaining mixed results. However, Mr. Heller notes that retired Air Force Major General Yeager lost a suit
