Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

Class Action/Substantiation Of Reasonableness Of Fees: Class Counsel’s $2.3 Million Fee Award Reversed, With Class Counsel Ordered To Produce Redacted Timesheets To Defense For Review At District Court Level

Cases: Class Actions, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

  District Judge Erred In Basing Fee Award Upon Only In Camera Review Of Timesheets Never Provided To The Defense.     Although occurring in a class action setting, this next case may have broader due process implications for cases in other areas of the law.  Time will tell on this prediction.     In Yamada v. […]

Allocation, Prevailing Party, Substantiation Of Reasonableness Of Fees: $390,000 Fee Award To Prevailing Defendants, Some Of Whom Were Alleged To Unsuccessfully Be Alter Egos, Is Affirmed On Appeal

Cases: Allocation, Cases: Prevailing Party, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

  Fee Substantiation Issues Do Not Preclude An Award Of Fees To Prevailing Parties.     In Asphalt Professionals, Inc. v. Emaron Homes, LLC, Case No. B261674 (2d Dist., Div. 6 Jan. 20, 2016) (unpublished), plaintiff lost a case against certain defendants (some of whom were sued as alter egos) under a construction contract with a

Reasonableness Of Fees/Substantiation Of Reasonableness Of Fees: $180,880 Fee Award To Prevailing FEHA Plaintiff Winning $92,500 Affirmed On Appeal

Cases: Reasonableness of Fees, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

  Dueling Appeals Resulted In No Change To Fee Award.      Alvarez v. W&L Harris Ranches, LLC, Case No. C074421 (3d Dist. Dec. 21, 2015) (unpublished) is an interesting case which primarily discusses the level of substantiation needed in a fee proceeding. It reinforces that California state court judges have a lot of discretion in

Costs, Prevailing Party, Section 1717, Substantiation: $107,450 Fee And $22,318.45 Cost Awards In Favor Of Prevailing Plaintiff In Rescission Suit Affirmed

Cases: Costs, Cases: Prevailing Party, Cases: Section 1717, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

  Routine Costs Do Include Privately Retained Reporters Who Transcribe Court Hearings.      In Kim v. Park, Case No. A139056 (1st Dist., Div. 3 Oct. 23, 2015) (unpublished), plaintiff was awarded $107,450 in fees and $22,318.45 in costs after obtaining rescission of a purchase of a business, with the fees being awarded based on a

Allocation, Prevailing Party, Substantiation Of Fees: Looks Like Prevailing General Contractor Garnered Over $403,000 In Attorney’s Fees/Expenses For Obtaining Compensatory Damages Of Around $141,467.21

Cases: Allocation, Cases: Prevailing Party, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

  Trial Court Did Not Abuse Discretion In Fee Award On Remand From Prior Appeal.     Barham Construction, Inc. v. City of Riverbank, Case Nos. F068373/F068914 (5th Dist. July 21, 2015) (unpublished) involved a situation where a general contractor for a skate project in Riverbank won a prior trial, with City being held responsible for

Discovery, Sanctions, Substantiation Of Fees: $2.7 Million In Discovery Sanctions Against Goodyear And Its Attorneys In Tire Failure Case Affirmed On Appeal

Cases: Discovery, Cases: Sanctions, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

  No Precise Linkage Between Harm and Compensatory Sanctions Required, Where Discovery Abuse Was Frequent Or Severe.     This next case is a reminder of how one must be candid in discovery, with contrary positions and obstructionist litigation tactics possibly leading to large monetary sanctions against both client and client’s attorneys (as well as non-monetary

Civil Rights, Substantiation: L.A. County Bar Association Requests Depublication/Review Grant From California Supreme Court On County of Los Angeles Board Of Supervisors v. Superior Court

Cases: Civil Rights, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

Implications On Fee Motions Provide First Ground Underlying Request.     On April 19, 2015, we posted on County of Los Angeles Board of Supervisors v. Superior Court (ACLU), 235 Cal.App.4th 1154 (2015), which held that attorney billing records were privileged and immune from discovery under a Government Code exemption.   We did observe that this would

Reasonableness Of Fees, Substantiation Of Fees: $97,835.84 Fee Recovery To Indian Wells Affirmed In Ficus Tree Hedge Dispute Against Losing Private Nuisance Plaintiffs

Cases: Reasonableness of Fees, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

  Attorney Declaration Suffices For Fee Substantiation At State Court Level, Surmounting Hearsay Objection Based On Business Records Exception.      In City of Indian Wells v. Lawellin, Case No. E060000 (4th Dist., Div. 2 June 11, 2015) (unpublished), City of Indian Wells prevailed in a dispute over a local ordinance limiting height of hedges to

Multiplier, Prevailing Party, Private Attorney General, Settlement, Special Fee Shifting Statute, Substantiation: Three Unpublished “Power Ball” Decisions Synopsized

Cases: Multipliers, Cases: Prevailing Party, Cases: Private Attorney General (CCP 1021.5), Cases: Settlement, Cases: Special Fee Shifting Statutes, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

  Dept. of Parks and Recreation v. Schoendorf, Case No. H039321 (6th Dist. May 26, 2015) (unpublished).    In this one, an appellate court denied $300,000 in attorney’s fees against the State under a settlement agreement where “reasonable diligence” governed the fee entitlement.  Given that the prevailing party determination was discretionary under this clause and

Special Fee Shifting Statute, Substantiation Of Reasonableness Of Fees: $175,000 Fee Award To Community Services District Defendant Under Brown Act Reversed On Appeal

Cases: Special Fee Shifting Statutes, Cases: Substantiation of Reasonableness of Fees

  Nothing Showed Lawsuit Was Clearly Frivolous and No Billing Records Made Substantiation Possible.      In Kent v. Lake Don Pedro Community Services Dist., Case Nos. F068354/F069197 (5th Dist. May 14, 2015) (unpublished), a third appellate round, plaintiffs challenging Brown Act violations by the District were hit with an adverse fee award of $175,000 under

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