Cases: SLAPP

4/1 DCA Accepted Rationale In Sands Decision.             Trope v. Katz, 11 Cal.4th 274, 277 (1995), our Leading Case No. 12, bars an attorney’s ability to recover for self-representation under Civil Code section 1717, which has also been extended to the SLAPP context.  (See, e.g., Ellis Law Group v. Nevada City Sugar Loaf Properties, LLC,

2/7 DCA Followed Its Earlier Conclusion in Doe v. Luster, Departing Opposite Conclusion By 4/3 And 2/3 DCA Panels.             Defendant lost a SLAPP motion, but the trial court refused to award plaintiff attorney’s fees because it did not believe the motion to be frivolous.  Both sides appealed in Hirschfield v. Cohen, Case No. B267706

Lower Negotiated Hourly Rate Helped Salt Reasonableness Of Fee Award.             In Montoya v. Belk, Case No. D072275 (4th Dist., Div. 1 Mar. 23, 2018) (unpublished), defendant won a SLAPP motion and then sought $20,108 in mandatory “reasonable” fees, with the trial judge awarding $16,396 instead.   On appeal, plaintiffs challenged this as an abuse of

Claimed Hourly Rate Was Excessive As Well As The Request For Total Fee Recovery.             In Pecot v. Wong, Case No. A139566 (1st Dist., Div. 4 Jan. 18, 2018) (unpublished), defendants successfully moved to SLAPP six out of causes of action, then moving for mandatory attorney’s fees under CCP § 425.16.  Defendants sought nearly $200,000

Claimed Hourly Rate Was Excessive As Well As The Request For Total Fee Recovery.             In Pecot v. Wong, Case No. A139566 (1st Dist., Div. 4 Jan. 18, 2018) (unpublished), defendants successfully moved to SLAPP six out of causes of action, then moving for mandatory attorney’s fees under CCP § 425.16.  Defendants sought nearly $200,000

However, Fees Might Have To Be Allocated.             In Area 51 Production, Inc. v. City of Alameda, Case No. A144645 (1st Dist., Div. 4 Jan. 16, 2018) (unpublished), SLAPP defendants had their motions denied at the trial level but either won across the board or had partial victories in the appellate court, which decided the

Winning Defendant Requested $242,585, But Only Awarded $61,250.             A big theme of our blog is that fee recovery is with rare exceptions limited to reasonable fees, even where there is mandatory fee entitlement under statutes like SLAPP (in favor of victorious defendants).  D and S Homes, Inc. v. Ludlow, Case No. B276116 (2d Dist.,

Defense Smartly Stipulated To Reduce Fee Request By $10,000 During The Course Of Events.             Shalant v. Mackston, Case No. B271189 (2d Dist., Div. 8 Oct. 10, 2017) (unpublished) is a case where a trial judge granted the defense appellate fees of $96,420 for defending a SLAPP victory.  The decision is worth posting on because

Losing Plaintiff Waived Trope Argument And Lack Of Hearing Reporter’s Transcript Failed To Preserve Challenge To Amount Of Fee Award.             In Rianda v. Foster, Case No. B271773 (2d Dist., Div. 1 Sept. 21, 2017) (unpublished), winning SLAPP defendant was awarded mandatory attorney’s fees of $37,568 after a highly contested fee proceeding where the trial