Appellate Court Can Fix, But Better Practice Is To Have Trial Judge Do So.
Prevailing parties on appeal in a situation where a written agreement provides for fees are entitled to receive a fee award as the winners on appeal. (Stairpoint Properties, LLC v. Namvar, 201 Cal.App.4th 1101, 1111 (2011).) When this happens, who fixes the fees? The appellate court or the trial court? Although the appellate court can fix the fees, it is our experience—sometimes labeled in opinions as the “better practice”—that appellate courts direct trial courts do so even for appellate work. (See Herbert v. Needham, Case No. A150511 (1st Dist., Div. 5 May 30, 2018) (unpublished), citing Center for Biological Diversity v. County of San Bernardino, 185 Cal.App.4th 866, 901 (2010).) This makes sense, given that appellate courts are really not set up to engage in fact finding.