Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

Reasonableness Of Fees: 2/3 DCA Reverses An 82% Reduction In A FEHA Fee Request, Primarily Based On Reconstructed Time, As An Abuse Of Discretion And As Not Adequately Explained

Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

“Haircut” Was Too Much, Requiring A Remand Revisit.                In the fee award area, the amount awarded is governed by an abuse of discretion standard.  However, large “haircuts” sometimes strike an appellate panel as too arbitrary, requiring a revisit.  That was the case in Guevara v. Interstate Meat Co., Inc., Case No. B332546 (2d Dist., […]

Fee Clause Interpretation, Reasonableness Of Fees: Fee Clause Stating Recovery For Third-Party Costs For Collection Encompassed Attorney’s Fees

Cases: Fee Clause Interpretation, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

Trial Court Properly Reduced $124,160 Fee Request To $64,750 To Prevailing Party Based On Partial Success, Under A Percentage Of Recovery And A Lodestar Analysis.                Pulse Technology Consulting Group, Inc. v. Skowron & Bunning, LLP, Case No. C098036 (3d Dist. Feb. 11, 2025 partially published; fee discussion published) involved dueling actions about an information

Prevailing Party, Reasonableness Of Fees: $493,577.10 Attorney’s Fees Award In FEHA Case Was No Abuse Of Discretion

Cases: Prevailing Party, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

2/8 DCA Considers Deferential Standards For Review Of Fee Awards, With The Record Establishing Plaintiff Prevailed And The Fee Amount Was Not Erroneous.                2025 greets us with a published fee decision written by Justice Wiley of the 2/8 DCA, in his recognizable writing style, with the opinion being penned in Pollock v. Kelso, Case

Costs, Prevailing Party, Reasonableness Of Fees: Most Of Costs Award Is Affirmed, As Well As Substantial $1,751,500 Fee Award Is Sustained On Appeal

Cases: Costs, Cases: Prevailing Party, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

Certain Costs Not Awardable, With Lower Court’s Fee Reduction For Incivility And Abusive Litigation Found To Be No Abuse Of Discretion.                In Madison v. Theodore, Case Nos. B310551 et al. (2d Dist., Div. 7 Jan. 8, 2025) (unpublished), appellant lost a fiduciary duty-based case against plaintiffs to the tune of $3.9 million based on

Reasonableness Of Fees: Second Dist. Div. 8 Affirms $493K Fee Award And 1.8 Multiplier In FEHA Case

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

Attorney Fees Are Rather Discretionary, And The Trial Judge Is Usually In The Best Position To Exercise That Discretion.         Pamela Pollock alleged her supervisor, Michael Kelso, sexually harassed her and discriminated against her based on race by denying her a promotion. The trial court initially ruled the lawsuit was time-barred, but the California Supreme

Allocation, Employment, Reasonableness Of Fees, Section 998: Costs-Shifting Under CCP § 998 Displaced By More Specific Labor Code Provisions Relating To Costs For Or Against A Prevailing Employee

Cases: Allocation, Cases: Employment, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees, Cases: Section 998

However, In Unpublished Part Of Decision, Appellate Court Affirmed A Small Fee Award Where Counsel Failed To Follow Lower Court’s Supplemental Briefing/Proof Instructions.                Chavez v. California Collision, LLC, Case No. A167658 (1st Dist., Div. 3 Dec. 10, 2024) (partially published; fee discussion unpublished) is part of a continuing trend for appellate courts to honor

Default Judgment, Reasonableness Of Fees, Requests For Admission: Lower Court Properly Rejected Default Judgment Request Of About $308,000 In Fees Where Compensatory Damages Were Around $48,000

Cases: Default Judgments, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees, Cases: Requests for Admission

Fee Award Of $4,498.46 Was Proper, Given Inflated Fee Request; Costs Of Proof Sanctions Of $11,852.50 Out Of A Requested $123,016.40 Was Not Improper.                As only Justice Wiley can do in his individual writing style, he reminds us in LCPFV, LLC v. Somatdary Inc., Case No. B325599 (2d Dist., Div. 8 Nov. 13, 2024)

Deadlines, Reasonableness Of Fees: Make Sure You File/Serve Fee Oppositions Correctly And On Time

Cases: Deadlines, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

Also, Admissions In Appellate Brief Extension Requests Can Undermine A Claim That Fees Were Unreasonable Based On Non-complexity.                Currency Corp. v. Wertheim, LLC, Case No. B326827 (2d Dist., Div. 1 Nov. 5, 2024) (unpublished), where a substantial appellate fee award of $338,535 was sustained on appeal in favor of prevailing respondents, has some lessons

Block Billing, Multipliers, Reasonableness Of Fees: Plaintiff’s Counsel’s Inflated Fee Request In A Non-complex FEHA Case Where Block Billing And Failure To Explain Proliferation In Fees For A Six Month Period Through Trial Justified A Drastic Reduct

Cases: Block Billing, Cases: Multipliers, Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

Fee Request Was About $1.75 Million In A Case Where $36,757.25 In Damages Was Awarded, With A Lower Court Awarding Only $135,102.                Inflated fee requests are often reduced substantially and sometimes denied altogether.  In the next case, block billing, failure to explain a huge jump in the fee request for a six-month period, use

Reasonableness Of Fees: $1,050,000 Fee Award Affirmed In Penal Code Section 496(c) Case Where $1.5 Million Awarded Against Certain Defendants And $900,000 Against One Defendant

Cases: Reasonableness of Fees

Hourly Rates Are Left To Trial Judge’s Experience, With Reliance On Surveys And Matrices Left In His/Her Discretion.                In CJ Freshway America Corp. v. Lim, Case Nos. B321415/B322905 (2d Dist., Div. 8 Oct. 14, 2024) (unpublished), certain defendants were found jointly and severally liable for over $1.5 million and another defendant was found liable

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