Cases: Employment

Celebrities, Employment, Taxation: 2017 Tax Amendments Do Not Allow Tax Reporter To “Expense” Attorney’s Fees Expended In A Sexual Harassment/Abuse Nondisclosure Settlement

Cases: Celebrities, Cases: Employment, Cases: Taxation

“Weinsten Tax” Meant To Disincentivize Sexual Perpetrators/Harassing Employers From Trying To Prevent Reporting By Victims.             As a response to some sexual harassers/abusers requiring use of confidentiality agreements to silence victims, Congress in December 2017 amended the Tax Code in what has been dubbed the “Weinstein tax.”             Several bloggers indicate the repercussions of this.

Allocation, Civil Rights, Employment: No Abuse Of Discretion Where Trial Court Held Employer And VP Jointly And Severally Liable For Attorney Fees With No Apportionment Nor Statutory Fees Cap For CMIA Claim

Cases: Allocation, Cases: Civil Rights, Cases: Employment

Former Employee Achieved Her Litigation Objectives With Set Of Facts Common To All Causes Of Action.             In Gwin v. Natvan, Case No. B292990 (2d Dist., Div. 1 October 1, 2019) (unpublished), former employee sued employer and its vice-president (husband of employer’s owner) asserting 13 separate causes of action – several of which allowed

Appeal Sanctions, Employment, Judgment Enforcement, Undertaking: Employer Fails In Multiple Attempts To Reduce Fee Award, CEO Is Properly Denied Fees Following Successful Alter Ego Challenge, And Attorney Sanctioned $7,765 For Meritless Challenge

Cases: Appeal Sanctions, Cases: Employment, Cases: Judgment Enforcement, Cases: Undertaking

The Fees Award Against Employer Had Been Affirmed By The Sixth District Three Years Prior, The CEO Could Not Prove Employee’s Alter Ego Claims Were Frivolous, But Employer’s Motion To Release Surety Bond So Frivolous It Warranted 6th District’s Issuance Of Sanctions On Its Own Motion.             We originally posted on Khanna v. Sonasoft

Class Actions, Employment, POOF!: Class Action Win Of Labor Code Section 226 Penalties And Attorney Fees Against Employer Goes POOF! On Appeal

Cases: Class Actions, Cases: Employment, Cases: POOF!

Employer’s Failure To Include Premium Pay On Wage Statements For “On Duty” Meal And Rest Periods Did Not Trigger Penalties Because Premium Pay Is A Statutory Remedy For An Employer’s Conduct – Not An Amount “Earned” By The Employee.             A certified class of former and current non-exempt employees brought a lawsuit against their

Arbitration, Employment: 4/3 DCA Affirms Lower Court’s Denial Of Motion To Compel Arbitration Because, Among Other Things, Arbitration Clause Gave Arbitrator Mandatory Authority To Award Fees To Employer Even Where Fee-Shifting Statutes Favored Employe

Cases: Arbitration, Cases: Employment

Mandatory Language Of Fee Clause Demonstrated Substantive Unconscionability, Which Was Not Supplanted By More General Reference To JAMS Employment Rules Which Were More Discretionary In Nature.             We commend employment attorneys to read Randall v. Veros Credit, LLC, Case No. G056463 (4th Dist., Div. 3 Sept. 17, 2019) (unpublished), where a trial judge denied an

Employment, Multipliers, Substantiation Of Reasonableness Of Fees: FEHA Plaintiff Properly Awarded Fees At Reduced Hourly Rates, But Augmented By Hourly Rates For Enhancement Factors, And Then Correctly Denied Any Multiplier Beyond That

Cases: Employment, Cases: Multipliers, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

Almost $1.5 Million In Fees/Costs Sought, But Ultimate Affirmed Award Was About $649,000.             The next case is an interesting example of how a trial judge’s decision to not credit prior fee awards to an employment contingency attorney was affirmed because there was not sufficient foundation to show the prior awards were similar to the

Civil Rights, Costs, Employment, Section 998: Where Thrust Of Losing Plaintiff’s Suit Was A FEHA Claim, Trial Court Properly Refused To Award CCP § 998 Costs To Winning Defendant Despite Loss On Non-FEHA Whistleblower Claim

Cases: Civil Rights, Cases: Costs, Cases: Employment, Cases: Section 998

Prominence Of Suit Prevailed, Plus Appellate Court Offers Tips On What Trial Courts Ought To Follow When There Is A Split In Intermediate Appellate Thought On An Issue.             In Thiry v. Pet Partners, Inc., Case No. E070851 (4th Dist., Div. 2 June 20, 2019) (unpublished), plaintiff brought a mixed FEHA/whistleblower/UCF suit based on allegations

Employment: $6,845.50 Fee Award Against Unsuccessful Plaintiff Ex-Employee In Labor Commissioner Appeal Was No Abuse Of Discretion

Cases: Employment

Fee Entitlement Existed And Amount Of Requested Fees Was Reasonable In Nature.             In Gonzalez v. Lucky Seven Dragons, Inc., Case No. B289269 et al. (2d Dist., Div. 3 June 20, 2019) (unpublished), in pro per plaintiff, ex-employee appealed an adverse Labor Commissioner decision in favor of ex-employer.  Plaintiff gained nothing on his appeal to

Employment: $46,062 Fee Award Out Of Requested $104,771 Was No Abuse Of Discretion Where Co-Counsel Fees Seen As Unnecessary And .6 Negative Multiplier Applied

Cases: Employment

Plaintiff Only Recovered $29,505.18 In Wage/Hour Damages.             In Shaw v. I-Safe, Inc., Case No. D073721 (4th Dist., Div. 1 May 31, 2019) (unpublished), plaintiff recovered $29,505.68 in damages in a wage/hour case, then moved for $104,771 in fees as the prevailing party (an amount which included fees for a co-counsel).  The lower court awarded

Costs, Employment: Defendant Winning Against Plaintiff’s Employment-Based Claims, Although Losing Cross-Claims, Entitled To Routine Costs, But Not Costs Under Labor Code Section 218.5

Cases: Costs, Cases: Employment

No Finding That Claims Made Or Prosecuted In Bad Faith Failed To Trigger Section 218.5 Cost-Shifting.             Plaintiff and defendant/cross-complainant lost both of their suits after a bench trial, plaintiff losing wage/hour claims and cross-complainant losing fiduciary duty/joint venture cross-claims.  The lower court determined both sides should bear their own costs, with no determination made

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