Santisas (Our Leading Case #6) Dictated The Result.
In Rubin v. Cho, Case No. A165667 (1st Dist., Div. 5 July 6, 2023) (unpublished), close to trial, plaintiff dismissed a breach of contract complaint alleging the seller of a house failed to disclose all known material facts and defects affecting the property and make other disclosures required by law under the purchase agreement. Seller moved for attorney’s fees under a contractual fees clause. Both the trial and appellate court found that the gravamen of the complaint was “on the contract” such that the dismissal of the complaint did not lead to fee exposure based on Santisas v. Goodin, 17 Cal.4th 599, 602 (1998). Plaintiff’s efforts to recast the complaint as being based on torts or arguing the contract was being disavowed did not resonate with the appellate court.