Cases: Homeowner Associations

Homeowner Associations/POOF!:  2/4 DCA Reinstates Homeowner’s Breach Of Fiduciary/Quiet Title Claims And Allows Further Amendment Of Slander Of Title Claim, Which Causes Attorney’s Fees Award To HOA As Prevailing Party To Go POOF!

Cases: Homeowner Associations, Cases: POOF!

$249,861.50 Fee Award Goes Away For Now.             In Colyear v. Rolling Hills Community Assn. of Rancho Palos Verdes, Case Nos. B278198/B279671 (2d Dist., Div. 4 Apr. 23, 2018) (unpublished), homeowner sued HOA for breach of fiduciary duty, slander of title, and quiet title arising from a tree trimming dispute between neighbors.  (Boy, oh boy, […]

Homeowner Association:  Trial Court Correctly Denied Plaintiff’s Negligence-Based Fee Recovery Against HOA Based On Gravamen Of The Claim—Negligence, Not CC&R Enforcement

Cases: Homeowner Associations

Plaintiff’s Fee Request Of $145,212.67 Rebuffed By Trial and Appellate Courts.             This next case should illustrate how both trial and appellate jurists try to get to the nub of a dispute—with the ultimate decision on the nature of the claim being very decisive on whether there is fee entitlement.             Martini v. Bel Azure

Homeowner Associations:  $707,117 Fee Award To HOA Goes Away Upon Reversal Of HOA’s Victory In Judgment Notwithstanding The Verdict Ruling On Plaintiff Homeowners’ Nuisance  Claim

Cases: Homeowner Associations

Further Fee Proceeding Remand Occurs In Decade-Spanning Litigation.             Cathedral Hill Tower Condominium Assn. v. Garbar, Case No. A144036 (1st Dist., Div. 3 Mar. 27, 2018) (unpublished) was the latest appeal by homeowners against HOA in a decade-spanning action involving claims for nuisance, negligence, and breach of contract by HOA.  A jury found in homeowners’

Homeowner Associations:  HOA Properly Awarded Fees Against Trustee And An Individual Suing As Property’s Successor-In-Interest

Cases: Homeowner Associations

Homeowner Was Assessed With About $76,000 In Fees Awardable In HOA’s Favor.             Plaintiff, who sued as a trustee of her deceased father’s trust and individually as successor-in-interest to a condominium property, lost an exclusive garage use dispute against the HOA through a summary judgment motion, which was affirmed on appeal.  HOA then was awarded

Homeowner Associations/Reasonableness Of Fees:  HOA Properly Awarded $31,375 Out Of $91,936 Base Line Lodestar Fee Request

Cases: Homeowner Associations, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

Trial Judge Did Not Err In Assessing Settlement Offers With Respect To Overall Request.             In Villa Riviera Condominium  Assn. v. Berg, Case No. B269191 (2d Dist., Di. 3 Feb. 8, 2018) (unpublished), HOA did win a CC&R assessment battle against homeowner on a summary judgment motion, then seeking a lodestar amount of $91,936 in

Homeowner Associations/Prevailing Party:  Mixed Results In Transfer Fee Litigation Means No One Obtained Fees Or Costs

Cases: Homeowner Associations, Cases: Prevailing Party

Gotta Look At The Big Picture, Appellate Court Reminds Us On Prevailing Party Status.             Marina Pacifica Homeowners Assn. v. Southern California Financial Corp., Case No. B276719 (2d Dist., Div. 8 Feb. 5, 2018) (published) was hard fought litigation over the validity and timing of an assignment/transfer fee.  In the end, the trial court—after bifurcating

Homeowner Associations/Prevailing Party:  Homeowner’s Interim Preliminary Injunction Success, Although Ultimately Losing On The Merits, Did Not Make Her Prevailing Party Under Davis-Stirling Fee-Shifting Provision

Cases: Homeowner Associations, Cases: Prevailing Party

Analogy To California Homeowner ‘s Bill Of Rights Fee-Shifting Scheme Unavailing On Appeal.             In Artus v. Gramercy Towers Condominium Assn., Case No. A147297 (1st Dist., Div. 1 Jan. 24, 2018) (published), plaintiff homeowner sued HOA claiming it illegally failed to enforce cumulative voting standards under governing documents.  The trial court granted homeowner a preliminary

Homeowners Association, Family Law, Prevailing Party:  Appellate Courts Deal With Trifecta Of Fees Issues In Unpublished November 9 Opinions

Cases: Family Law, Cases: Homeowner Associations, Cases: Prevailing Party

Homeowners Association—Anaheim Hills Planned Community Assn. v. Chen, Case No. G053128 (4th Dist., Div. 3 Nov. 9, 2017) (Unpublished).             In this first one, homeowner appealed a trial court’s award of appellate fees to HOA in a CC&R dispute under both a prior settlement agreement and the Davis-Stirling Act.  The appellate fee award of $36,830.50

Homeowner Associations:  Trial Court’s Refusal To Award HOA-Affiliated Individual Defendant Fees, As Against Voluntarily Dismissing Plaintiffs, Under Statutory Fee-Shifting Provision Reversed On Appeal

Cases: Homeowner Associations

Santisas Argument Did Not Apply To CC&R Statutory Fee Provision And Gravamen Of Plaintiffs’ Action Was Based On CC&Rs.             In Durack v. Wang, Case No. B276086 (2d Dist., Div. 7 Sept. 25, 2017) (unpublished), homeowners sued the HOA and several individual defendants for negligence and breach of fiduciary duty (among other claims), but referencing

Homeowner Associations:  HOA Not Entitled To Fees Where Gist Of Successor Homeowner’s Suit Was Fraud Based

Cases: Homeowner Associations

Denial Of HOA’s Fee Request Affirmed On Appeal.             In Mims v. Park Hill on Pepper Avenue Community Association, Case No. E065990 (4th Dist., Div. 2 Sept. 13, 2017) (unpublished), successor homeowner initially sued HOA on various fraud-based claims based on the failure to provide her notice that the property was within the HOA and

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