L.A. Superior Court Judge Did Not Reduce Fee Request, But Refused To Award a Multiplier.
Much to the chagrin of the Association of Deputy District Attorneys, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James C. Chalfant awarded $101,625 in attorney’s fees against it and in favor of L.A. Assistant Head Deputy District Attorney Peter Burke after he won an appeal by the ADDA of a judgment by which the union was ordered to hold an election for its board and amended bylaws were found invalid.
Judge Chalfant awarded the entire fee request apparently, but refused to award a multiplier to plaintiff. Even though the ADDA said it only collected $20,000 in fees over the last two years, the judge found that this “weak showing” did not justify any reduction in plaintiff’s lodestar request. He chided the union, being quoted as saying “you didn’t have to appeal if you wanted to conserve resources.” The Court of Appeal opinion can be found at 189 Cal.App.4th 801 (2010).
That quotation and more details can be found in Sherri M. Okamoto’s March 18, 2011 article, “ADDA Hit With $100,000 Fee Award in Suit by Dissident Member,” in the Metropolitan News-Enterprise.