Indio Olive Farmers Sidestep Fee Award in Hot-Air Balloonist Dispute.
As reported in a December 8, 2011 post by The Indio Sun, Indio olive farm owners do not have to pay more than $330,000 in attorney’s fees to hot-air balloonists they fought for two years based on the claims that the balloonists flew too low over their farms–creasing an alleged invasion of privacy and nuisance. Balloonists, after they apparently won the merits of the dispute, sought fees under California’s private attorney general statute. However, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Randall D. White recently ruled that the balloonists’ efforts did not rise to the level of protecting the public’s interest or rights. Fee exposure avoided by the Indio farmers, at least for now.
Sgt. Jeffrey Sarver Does Not Fare As Well When Hurt Locker Film Team Wins $187,000 in SLAPP Fees Against Him After Dismissal of False Light/Defamation Suit.
Matthew Belloni, in a December 8, 2011 post for The Hollywood Reporter, informs us that Sgt. Jeffrey Sarver did not do so well when U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Nguyen (C.D.Cal.) SLAPPed a false light/defamation suit he brought against Hurt Locker’s filmmakers, producers, and distributor. He claimed the Jeremy Renner character in the movie parlayed on his bomb disposal expert experiences and cast him in a false light. The First Amendment transformative use defense primarily prevailed as the winning argument for defendants. We know that winning defendants on SLAPP motions are entitled to mandatory fees, and the district judge did just that: awarding $187,000 in fees to the three set of defendants.
Oh the pain
Milwaukee Lemon Law Attorney Blasts New State Law Capping Fees Awardable to Consumers.
According to Debra Cassens Weiss’ December 8, 2011 post in The American Bar Association Journal online version, Milwaukee lawyer Vince Megna, who calls himself the “lemon law king,” is hopping mad about a new Wisconsin law that establishes a presumption that a reasonable attorney’s fee is no more than three times the damages awarded to winning consumers in lemon law cases. Mr. Megna states it was unfair to cap fees for consumer attorneys, but not for corporations seeking to prolong lawsuits.
Lawyer May Be Sanctioned For Calling A Bankruptcy Judge a “Catholic Knight Witch Hunter” in a Legal Memorandum She Signed.
Ms. Weiss also reports on Minesota lawyer Rebekah Nett, who is facing possible sanctions for conduct referenced in our subtitle. After signing a document that said the courts “were composed of a bunch of ignoramus, bigoted Catholic beasts that carry the sword of the church,” U.S. Bankrupty Judge Nancy Dreher issued an OSC why Ms. Nett and her client shouldn’t be fined $10,000.