Second District, Division One Reluctantly Remands Fee Award for Second Look. A good lesson is taught in the next case: SLAPP fees are only awardable for work in the SLAPP proceeding itself, so apportion out unrelated time at the outset of a fee motion to insure that the award is affirmed on appeal. […]
First District, Division Five Decision is a Law Professor’s Dream on Judgment Enforcement/Acknowledgment Issues. By now you know (if you have followed our blog or will soon know) that defendant winners of SLAPP motions are entitled to a mandatory award of reasonable attorney’s fees. See our category “SLAPP” to see other catalogued decisions on
Watts v. Curry, Case No. B213862 (2d Dist., Div. 6 May 17, 2010) (unpublished) The first sentence of this decision told us it was written in the distinctive writing style of Presiding Justice Gilbert: “A series of seemingly petty, yet niggling, acts fueled by anger and frustration precipitated this unfortunate lawsuit.” A
U.S. District Judge Says “Nay” to Untimely Objection, Refusing to Follow Unpublished State Court Decision and Finding “The Horse Relevant to the Objection Left the Barn” Long Ago. Here is an interesting development that Mr. Ed of an erstwhile television series (the proverbial “horse, of course, of course”) would be proud of. It also
Second District, Division 1 Clarifies that Maughan Did Not Establish a 50 Hour Definitive “Upper Limit” for Compensable SLAPP Motion Work. In Stark v. Withrow, Case No. B214957 (2d Dist., Div. 1 Apr. 26, 2010) (unpublished), the Second District, Division 1 affirmed a $15,000 fee award (out of a requested $35,382.37) in favor
Remand Also Ordered For Purposes of Awarding Appellate Defense Fees. In Mendoza v. ADP Screening and Selection Services, Inc., Case No. B214653 (2d Dist., Div. 7 Mar. 23, 2010) (certified for publication), the appellate court considered the collision of Megan’s Law and the SLAPP statute. Specifically, Megan’s Law has a provision prohibiting use
First District, Division 2 Finds No Statement of Decision Required on Fee Ruling and that Lodestar Rates For Out-of-County Counsel Could Indeed Be Higher. By now, most of you readers know that the anti-SLAPP statute has a mandatory fee-shifting statute in favor of prevailing defendants. That means the issue generally devolves to how much,
Second District, Division 4 Agrees that Attorney Representing His Own Interests Cannot Recoup SLAPP Fees. Attorneys representing themselves in successful anti-SLAPP motions are not entitled to recover attorney’s fees because there are no attorney-client relationships that lead to the attorney paying or becoming liable to pay in consideration for the legal representation. (Taheri Law
First District, Division 1 Does Reject That Insurance Defense Counsel Cannot Seek Fee Recovery. In Roeder v. Gardner, Case No. A123864 (1st Dist., Div. 1 Feb. 22, 2010) (unpublished), defendant—through insurance defense counsel—obtained an anti-SLAPP strike of four causes of action out of eight. The trial court awarded $9,325 in mandatory attorney’s fees and
Second District, Division 1 Rules Plaintiff’s Mandate Challenge to Compel City To Award a Contract Through Competitive Bidding Not Subject to anti-SLAPP Statute. City of Pico Rivera likely felt pretty good after SLAPPing a plaintiff business’s mandate challenge to City’s invalidation of a contract with plaintiff and reentry into a contract with one of
