Orange County Also Bore More Than $2 Million of Legal Fees During Unsuccessful Battle.
As reported by Kimberly Edds in an October 6, 2011 article in The Orange County Register, the Orange County Board of Supervisors has approved a settlement with the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs after losing a challenge to the 3% at 50 pension benefit, when the Second District Court of Appeal sided in January 2011 with the deputies. Under the settlement, the County will pay the Association $1.3 million to cover some portion of its legal fees, after County itself incurred more than $2 million in the unsuccessful lawsuit. The settlement also includes $312,000 for the Orange County Employees Retirement System to reimburse its portion of lawsuit costs. The settlement was the result of mediation sessions presided over by Retired Justice Howard B. Wiener (who used to sit on the Fourth District, Division 1 and has acted as a retired neutral for a number of years).