Fourth District, Division 2 Nixes Overly Technical Argument on Deadlines.
You knew where this one would end when the appellate panel concluded at the tail end of the opinion that “Plaintiff’s contention on appeal elevates form over substance.” That meant the trial court’s order awarding costs, including attorney’s fees, in the amount of $8,078.35 was going to get affirmed. It was.
Waters v. Munoz, Case No. E048918 (4th Dist., Div. 2 June 21, 2010) (unpublished) involved a situation where a defendant won an OSC harassment proceeding, and the trial court awarded him attorney’s fees and costs of $8,078.35 in a renewed motion after losing plaintiff claimed she did not get notice of the fee motion.
The sole challenge by plaintiff was whether the defense motion was supported by a proper costs memorandum. This argument did not go very far. All of the purposes of a costs memorandum were satisfied by the fee motion, which was timely filed. Put another way, form was going to prevail substance—naught! (See Civ. Code, § 3528.)