Cases: Multipliers

Employment, Lodestar, Multiplier: Employer Not Winning Total Defense Victory In De Novo Sup. Ct. Appeal Of Labor Comm. Award Properly Hit With Adverse Fee Award Of $86,160 Even Though Labor Comm. Award Only $4,250 (Rev. Down To $2,250 By Court Of Appeal)

Cases: Employment, Cases: Lodestar, Cases: Multipliers

Limited Success Argument Does Not Diminish Fee Recovery In This Particular Context.             In Nishiki v. Danko Meredith P.C., Case No. A147733 (1st Dist., Div. 4 Aug. 1, 2018) (published), an employer suffered an adverse Berman hearing award before the Labor Commissioner for waiting time penalties for failure to deliver a check for final wages […]

Civil Rights/Multiplier: Ninth Circuit Affirms $5,378,174.66 Civil Rights Fee Recovery, Inclusive Of 2.0 Positive Multiplier, For Five Prisoners Winning Compensatory And Punitive Damages Against County Of Los Angeles And Supervisory Jail Officials

Cases: Civil Rights, Cases: Multipliers

Prison Litigation Reform Act Did Not Cap Unruh Act Fee Recovery.             In Rodriguez v. County of Los Angeles, No. 13-56292 et al. (9th Cir. May 30, 2018) (published), the Ninth Circuit reviewed and affirmed 42 U.S.C. § 1983 excessive force verdicts of $740,000 in compensatory damages and $210,000 in punitive damages (the latter against

Civil Rights/Equity/Multiplier:  Although Total Judgment Offset Denied, Fee Award Based On 2.0 Positive Multiplier Reversed On Appeal

Cases: Civil Rights, Cases: Equity, Cases: Multipliers

Multiplier Is Not Automatic, So Reversed To Consider Proper Factors On Appeal.             In Campos v. Kennedy, Case Nos. B266663/B268812 (2d Dist., Div. 2 Feb. 13, 2018) (unpublished), plaintiff won a $225,000 compensatory verdict under civil rights fee shifting provisions for sexual battery.  Later, the trial court awarded plaintiff $ 2,924,830 in statutory fees, but

Civil Rights/Multiplier:  2.0 Multiplier Fee Award In FEHA Case Was No Abuse Of Discretion

Cases: Civil Rights, Cases: Multipliers

Compensatory Award Was $1 Million, With $1,945,295 FEHA Award Affirmed On Appeal.             In Lopez v. City of Beverly Hills, Case No. B268451 (2d Dist., Div. 3 Nov. 30, 2017 unpublished; received for posting Dec. 1, 2017 unpublished), a FEHA plaintiff—after two years of litigation and a 10-day jury trial involving 24 witnesses–won to the

Civil Rights, Lodestar, Multiplier, Reasonableness Of Fees:  Trial Judge Properly Cut Lodestar By 25%, And Applied A 1.5 Positive Multiplier, For Total Fee Award Of $752,925.92 In Case Garnering Compensatory Damages Of $625,000 To Plaintiff

Cases: Civil Rights, Cases: Lodestar, Cases: Multipliers, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

Trial Judge Also Properly Awarded $15,000 Supplemental Fees For Posttrial Work.             For those of you not practicing in the employment/FEHA area, civil rights plaintiffs in disability/harassment/failure to accommodate cases are entitled to recovery of attorney’s fees under a pro-plaintiff statutory fee-shifting provision to be construed liberally to allow plaintiff full compensation for prevailing in

Class Action, Common Fund, Employment, Lodestar, Multiplier:  N.D. Cal. District Judge Ilston Awards Wage/Hour Class Action Counsel $15,200,002.90 In Hybrid Statutory Fee/Common Fund Case Against Wal-Mart

Cases: Class Actions, Cases: Common Fund, Cases: Employment, Cases: Lodestar, Cases: Multipliers

District Judge Confronts Multiple Issues In Reaching Fee Award.             U.S. District Judge Susan Ilston in Ridgeway v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., Case No. 08-cv-05221-SI (N.D. Cal. Sept. 14, 2017 Doc. #606) confronted numerous issues in deciding the appropriate award to class counsel in a truck driver employee class action case against Wal-Mart for wage hour

Multipliers/Reasonableness Of Fees:  $2.5 Million Fee Award To Class Counsel Was No Abuse Of Discretion

Cases: Multipliers, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

    Class Counsel Appealed, But To No Avail Except On Two Minor Issues.               Woosley v. State of California, Case No. B261454 (2d Dist., Div. 5 April 24, 2017) (unpublished) was a dispute which spanned close to 40 years, with the parties then hassling over attorney’s fees over the last dozen years.  (Kinda

Employment, Lodestar, Multiplier, Record: Plaintiff Employee Obtaining $43,654.50 On Unpaid Commission Claim Awarded $58,341.50 Under Labor Code Fee-Shifting Statute

Cases: Employment, Cases: Lodestar, Cases: Multipliers, Cases: Record

  Plaintiff Requested $212,287.50 (Inclusive Of A 1.5 Multiplier), But Lower Court’s Award Of A Reasonable Lodestar Was No Abuse of Discretion.      Plaintiff employee eventually obtained recovery of $43,654.50 in an unpaid commission dispute even though he at one point was willing to accept $75,000 to settle which included a $30,000 component to reimburse

Civil Rights: $870,720.63 Fee Award To Winning FEHA Plaintiff Affirmed On Appeal Where $749,999 In Compensatory Damages Awarded By Jury

Cases: Civil Rights, Cases: Multipliers

  1.25 Multiplier Sustained; Reversal of One Intertwined Retaliation Claim Did Not Require Reconsideration Of Fee Award. William A. Offutt, winner of adding machine operators contest, 1937.  Library of Congress.     In Warehime v. Farmers Ins. Exchange, Case No. F068843 (5th Dist. Dec. 15, 2015) (unpublished), plaintiff brought a four-count FEHA inspired suit against Farmers,

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