Special Fee Shifting Statute: State/Local Services Prevailing Claimant Can Obtain Attorney’s Fees For Superior Court Mandate Proceedings, But Not Administrative Hearing Costs

Welfare and Institutions Code Section 10962 Fee-Shifting Provision At Issue.

     In K.I. v. Wagner, Case No. D063822 (4^th Dist., Div. 1 May 2, 2014) (published), the Fourth District, Division 1 appellate court decided that state/local social service claimants denied benefits at an administrative level, but winning in a superior court mandate proceeding, are entitled to recover superior court mandamus attorney’s fees under a specific fee-shifting statute, Welfare and Institutions Code section 10962. However, the rub was that claimant also wanted fees incurred in the administrative process hearing process, but that was determined not to be awardable by the reviewing court. Because the statutory language was slanted

Slanted.  Library of Congress.

in favor of recovery in a judicial mandamus proceeding, fees at earlier points in time were not recoverable—especially given that laypersons can actually appear at the administrative hearings and another construction would penalize the state by significantly increasing its costs of administering social service programs.