Plaintiff Litigant Properly Assessed With Sanctions Because Engaged In Litigation For Improper Purpose In Light of Releases Under Prior Settlement Agreement.
Beuchel v. Flanagan, Case No. B296548 (2d Dist., Div. 2 May 28, 2020) (unpublished) demonstrates, yet again, how neighborhood disputes can result in dire consequences, although the amount involved was not that bad in the end. However, there is an object lesson to this case—try to work it out!
In this one, neighbors …. not so much neighbors, were involved. They were neighbors for 20 years, but litigants for 15 years. They finally signed a prior settlement agreement, replete with releases, but that did not stop the plaintiff from filing a suit on a boundary dispute issue yet again. Plaintiff lost, with the trial judge imposing $6,075 in sanctions for the filing of a complaint for an “improper purpose.”
Plaintiff’s appeal went for naught. The prior settlement agreement release was binding, basically disposing of the case and showing plaintiff filed suit out of animus. Plaintiff was sanctioned for filing a complaint for an “improper purpose,” not legal frivolity—which would have shifted the blame to plaintiff’s attorney, not the situation here so that plaintiff had to bear the sanctions award.