SLAPP: $30,889 SLAPP Winner Fee Award Affirmed On Appeal

 

SLAPP Work Benefiting Non-Attorney and Attorney Defendants Was Okay, As Long As a True “Co-Benefit.”

     In Klinger v. Alderete, Case No. B245403 (2d Dist., Div. 2 Aug. 6, 2013) (unpublished), both non-attorney and attorney parties obtained a SLAPP dismissal of a malicious prosecution action. Then, all of the winning defendants were awarded attorney’s fees of $30,889 (the total amount being requested).

     Loser’s appeal was not successful. The defense submitted detailed time records, including requests for fees at discounted rates. The trial and appellate court found the requests to be reasonable.

     Loser argued that some of time should have been excluded because it was done on behalf of attorney defendants so that the representing attorneys ran afoul of the Trope prohibition. That challenge failed, because an attorney who is a defendant can recover fees for SLAPP work performed that benefitted the attorney as well as non-attorney defendants. (Ramona Unified School Dist. v. Tsiknas, 135 Cal.App.4th 510, 524-535 (2005); Healdsburg Citizens for Sustainable Solutions v. City of Healdsburg, 206 Cal.App.4th 988, 997 (2012).)

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