Fee Award for SLAPP Motion Defendant Sustained.
In a SLAPP motion context, defendant won a fee award of $13,900 based predominantly on the declaration of their counsel calculating the fee for services but not attaching detailed time records.
Did this prevail on appeal?
You bet. The appellate court in Souza v. Farrer, Case No. A129544 (1st Dist., Div. 5 June 29, 2011) (unpublished), relying on Weber v. Langholz, 39 Cal.App.4th 1578, 1587 (1995), decided that an attorney declaration providing the names and hourly fees charged by the working attorneys was sufficient, coupled with the trial court’s independent review of the case file and internal notes of what occurred in the case. Enough said; sufficient substantiation in this one.