Many Of Appellant’s Challenges Foreclosed By Resolution In Prior Appeal Which Was Dismissed, With Remaining Challenges Not Surviving An Abuse Of Discretion Deferential Review Standard.
In Locke Management Assn. v. Esch, Case Nos. C087137/C088192 (3d Dist. Apr. 2, 2021) (unpublished), defendant lost a right of first refusal challenge by plaintiff where there were contractual and Davis-Stirling Act fee shifting entitlement provisions. She lost an earlier merits appeal of the lower court judgment and an award of about $150,000 in attorney’s fees to plaintiff (failing to raise fee entitlement challenges in the earlier appeal). Sadly, she continued to fight, such that plaintiff moved for postjudgment enforcement and appellate fees of $118,148 for its further efforts in the case—which were granted. (Plaintiff did a smart thing at the lower court level, only requesting $35,000 out of $54,028 in incurred appellate fees.) She appealed again in the consolidated cases, but appellant lost again. Appellant forfeited many arguments because (1) she failed to provide record citations, (2) she argued fee entitlement issues which should have been raised in the prior appeal or were implicitly decided in the prior appeal when it was dismissed, (3) she did not raise timely a failure by plaintiff to adhere to an ADR procedure by a demurrer at an earlier stage of the proceedings, and (4) the lower court’s amended judgment, one which included postjudgment fees, did not reopen earlier substantive determinations about fee entitlement.