Respondent Had Too Much Of A Pecuniary Interest, Even As A Non-Profit With Respect To Stake In The Litigation.
Inyo County Local Agency Formation Commission v. Southern Mono Healthcare Dist., Case Nos. C085138/C086087 (3d Dist. May 13, 2021) (unpublished), involved a mandate petition filed by a petitioner against Southern Mono in what was, in essence, a “turf war” over whether respondent could serve the Eastern Sierra area from its South Main Street medical clinic in Bishop. Southern Mono won based on statute of limitations and laches defenses, then moving for over $250,000 in private attorney fees. The trial court denied the request, with the appellate court affirming that determination. The main problem was that Southern Mono submitted evidence that it would lose $780,000 in hard costs, monthly lease payments of $8500 with no recoupment ability, and would lose lots of business. Despite that it was a non-profit, this pecuniary loss justified the trial court’s conclusion that the winning party had too much at stake for purposes of obtaining CCP § 1021.5 fees. (Jobe v. City of Orange, 88 Cal.App.4th 412, 418-419 (2001).) The broader “health access” concerns did not outweigh Southern Mono’s pecuniary interest.