Cases: Section 1717

Section 998/Section 1717: Where Germane Contract Lacked Fees Clause And 998 Offer Only Allowed Fees “If Appropriate,” Plaintiff Accepting 998 Offer Properly Denied Fees

Cases: Section 1717, Cases: Section 998

  998 Accepted Offer Was $40,000, Chagrined Plaintiff Denied Requested $225,750 In Fees.      Care of Justice Yegan and his colleagues in the Second District, Division 6, we have an interesting CCP § 998/Civil Code § 1717 decision in The DuPuis Group v. Atticus Information Systems, Inc., Case No. B242722 (2d Dist., Div. 6 Sept. […]

Allocation/Section 1717: Plaintiff’s Failure To Prevail Upon Successor Liability Theory Justified Attorney’s Fees Award To Claimed Successor

Cases: Allocation, Cases: Section 1717

  Fee Clauses Not Broad Enough to Support Tort Claim Wins, So Case Remanded to Fix Fees And Determine If Any Apportionment Necessary.      Brown Bark III, L.P. v. Haver, Case No. G047198 (4th Dist., Div. 3 Aug. 26, 2013) (unpublished) involved a defendant alleged to be the continuation of a defunct defendant signatory to

Equity/Fee Clause Interpretation/Section 1717: Prevailing Plaintiffs In LLC Dissolution Dispute Entitled To Fee Recovery Under Broadly Worded LLC Operating Agreement Fee Clause

Cases: Equity, Cases: Fee Clause Interpretation, Cases: Section 1717

  Pre-Appraisal Participation in Litigating Issues Meant Corp. Code Section 17351(b) Did Not Trump Broadly Worded Fees Clause.      Kashian v. Simonian, Case No. F064325 (5th Dist. Aug. 28, 2013) (unpublished) was a business litigation war between two founding member sides of an LLC. Plaintiffs filed for fiduciary duty breach, declaratory relief, and LLC judicial

Prevailing Party/Section 1717: Landlord And Tenant Denied Relief On Complaint And Cross-Complaint, With Neither Side Entitled To Attorney’s Fees As Section 1717 Prevailing Party

Cases: Landlord/Tenant, Cases: Prevailing Party, Cases: Section 1717

  Neither One Obtained Sought-After Litigation Objectives.      When a lower court has discretion to decide who the prevailing party is, unless the facts show otherwise, the abuse of discretion generally applies on appellate review and dictates the result. That is what happened here.      In Barez v. Ni, Case No. H037572 (6th Dist. July

Arbitration/Fee Clause Interpretation/Section 1717: Interesting Cross-Issue Case–Party Enjoining Arbitration Was Not Adverse Prevailing Party

Cases: Arbitration, Cases: Fee Clause Interpretation, Cases: Section 1717

  Court Can Award 1717 Fees With Enforceable Limitations–Such As, Did Adverse Party Acted Arbitrarily, Vexatiously, In Bad Faith Or Unreasonably–You Bethca!      We like Abbey v. Fortune Drive Associates, LLC, Case No. A135062 (1st Dist., Div. 1 July 29, 2013) (unpublished) for a lot, if not a couple of, reasons: (1) it talks about

Estoppel/RFAs/Section 1717: Denial Of Fees To Nonsignatory Defendants And $45,000 Against Defendants For “Costs Of Proof” Sanctions Based On Three RFA Denials Upheld

Cases: Estoppel, Cases: Requests for Admission, Cases: Section 1717

  This Case Cuts Across Several Issue Categories. Two painted bronze “golfers” compare notes.  Carol M. Highsmith Collection.  Library of Congress.      Masters v. Burton, Case Nos. B234555/B239447 (2d Dist., Div. 6 July 25, 2013) (unpublished) is a case about errant golf balls and litigation claiming concealment of the golf ball “hazard” in connection with

Fee Clause Interpretation/Section 1717: Nonsignatory Successor Correctly Exposed To Fee Exposure Where Complaint And Cross-Complaint Sought Interpretation Of Settlement Agreement With A Fees Clause

Cases: Fee Clause Interpretation, Cases: Nonsignatories, Cases: Section 1717

  Primary Right Showed Contractual Dispute Involved.      In CT Glendale, LLC v. Liu, Case No. B241445 (2d Dist., Div. 2 July 17, 2013) (unpublished), plaintiff obtained $37,612 in Civil Code section 1717 contractual fees in a litigation dispute interpreting which party owned cabinetry under a settlement agreement also containing a fees clause. Plaintiff won

Fee Clause Interpretation/Section 1717: Plaintiffs Winning Lease Dispute Under Broad Fees Clause Entitled To $158,180.75 Fee Recovery

Cases: Fee Clause Interpretation, Cases: Section 1717

  Defendant Recovered Less on Cross-Complaint Contractual Claim, So Plaintiffs Prevailed.      Julius Castle Restaurant, Inc. v. Payne, Case Nos. A130955 (1st Dist., Div. 1 June 10, 2013) (partially published; fee discussion not published) may be one of the first published cases discussing post-Riverisland factors for the courts and juries to consider after the overruling

Scroll to Top