Cases: Appealability

Appealability/Private Attorney General: Denial Of Private Attorney General Fee Recovery For Traffic Infraction Partial Win Was Proper Because Appeal Did Not Affect Winner’s Substantial Rights

Cases: Appealability, Cases: Private Attorney General (CCP 1021.5)

  Traffic Infraction Winners May Face Hard Road to Hoe As Far As Fee Recovery.     In Gray v. Superior Court, Case No. B269150 (2d Dist., Div. 3 May 31, 2016) (published), a person failing to stop at a red light partially won an automated camera traffic enforcement challenge, with the person filing to recovery […]

Appealability/Costs: Although Appeal From Judgment Did Allow For Appellate Jurisdiction Of Postjudgment Costs Ruling, Trial Judge Did Not Err By Awarding Prevailing Defendant Costs Of Deposition Before Ruling On Demurrer

Cases: Appealability, Cases: Costs

  Deposition Costs Were Reasonable Under The Circumstances.     In Estate of Gasper, Case No. A142068 (1st Dist., Div. 1 Apr. 28, 2016) (unpublished), an attorney handling the closing of a probate estate sued the title company for improperly closing escrow on a piece of real estate and causing him to incur fees/expenses in cleaning

Appealability/SLAPP: 1/3 DCA Determines That Order Granting SLAPP Fee After Merits SLAPP Grant Cannot Be Appealed Until Final Judgment Reached In Case

Cases: Appealability, Cases: SLAPP

  . . . . Although Fee Award Made At Same Time As Merits Ruling Can Be Appealed.     The First District, Division 3 took the time to reconsider a motion to dismiss a SLAPP plaintiff’s appeal of fairly substantial fee awards after defense grants of a SLAPP motion.  (The fee awards totaled over $603,000

Appealability/POOF!/Special Fee Shifting Statute: Reversal Of Penal Code Section 496(c) Verdict Means $1.15 Million Fee And Costs Award Went POOF!

Cases: Appealability, Cases: POOF!, Cases: Special Fee Shifting Statutes

  Postjudgment Fees Also Reversed, But Expert Witness Fees Sustained Based On Failure To Separate Appeal The Postjudgment Award.     In Kayne v. Mense, Case No. B254975 (2d Dist., Div. 1 Mar. 25, 2016) (unpublished), defendants were found to have breached a fiduciary duty to plaintiff (giving rise to compensatory and punitive damages) and found

Appealability/Probate: Prevailing Party Determinations Under Fee-Shifting Statutes, Without Fixing Of Fee Amounts, Were Prematurely Appealed

Cases: Appealability, Cases: Probate

  Once Amounts Fixed, Appeal Of Actual Postjudgment Awards Would Be Proper.      The Fifth District case of Estate of Kinerson, Case No. F070309 (5th Dist. Feb. 22, 2016) (unpublished) concerned certain rulings in a probate estate about whether classic cars, shop tools and household furnishings belonged to the surviving spouse as separate property or

Appealability/Section 998: Nonfinal Fee Recovery With No Fixed Amount Awarded Affirmed, But Premature; 998 Expert Witness Award Reversed Because Uncertain If Plaintiff Prevailed Based On Unfixed Fee Award

Cases: Appealability, Cases: Section 998

Confusion Amok – But Fee and Expert Witness Fee Recovery Awaited Subsequent Determinations.     JMR Construction Corp. v. Environmental Assessment and Remediation Mgt., Inc., Case No. H039055 (6th Dist. Dec. 30, 2015) (partially published; fee and expert witness fee discussions not published) just goes to show you that fee and 998 recoveries will not have

Appealability/Costs/Deadlines/Section 1717: Trifecta Of Unpublished Decisions On Various Fee/Costs Issues

Cases: Appealability, Cases: Costs, Cases: Deadlines, Cases: Section 1717

  Costs—CEQA Record Preparation:  North County Advocates v. City of Carlsbad, Case No. D066488 (4th Dist., Div. 1 Sept. 10, 2015) (Unpublished).     In this first case, the appellate court reversed and remanded a costs award in favor of City in a costs award with respect to certain record preparation costs.  The takeaways here are

Appealability, Costs, Paralegal: $40,610.68 In Paralegal Fees To Prepare/Present Electronic Evidence At Trial Properly Awardable As Costs

Cases: Appealability, Cases: Costs, Cases: Paralegal Time

  Trial Court Properly Found They Were “Reasonably Necessary.”      In Green v. County of Riverside, Case No. D067424 (4th Dist., Div. 1 July 29, 2015) (published), plaintiff lost an unreasonable police force civil rights case. Later, the trial judge awarded defendants $66,453.02 in costs, $40,610.68 of which constituted paralegal fees for helping prepare/present electronic

Appealability, Reasonableness Of Fees: Sham Guaranty Defense Case Producing Divergent Results Also Tally A “Wash” On Fee Awards In The End

Cases: Appealability, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

  Dueling Fee Motions Really Come Close To Negating Each Other.     Iota Five, LLC v. Dobron, Case No. G050738 (4th Dist., Div. 3 May 11, 2015) (unpublished) was a case where there were fee clauses in guaranties, with the two defendants—represented by the same counsel—gaining a complete victory on a sham guaranty defense as

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