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Victory
Posted: Thu Apr 30, 2020 10:30 pm
by Bob78164
A while ago, one of my partners asked me to handle an appeal of an attorney fee award against our client. I'd been kind of a fly on the wall as the case progressed, so I knew that opposing counsel was behaving (to put it mildly) like a jackass. That's not just me believing my partner -- it was apparent from what opposing counsel put in writing, and from some deposition transcripts that I'd seen.
Anyway, at the end of the case, the trial court awarded the jackass more than $280,000 in fees against our client. The appellate argument was Tuesday.
The decision came down today.
We have a very happy client. --Bob
Re: Victory
Posted: Fri May 01, 2020 9:31 am
by Bob Juch
The plaintiff's legal fees are outrageous! Nevertheless, while I agree with the appeal court's decision based on prior case law, I think it's unfair. The plaintiff was denied rest breaks and meal breaks and worked during that time. She was ultimately paid for that time. In what world does that not constitute wages?
Re: Victory
Posted: Fri May 01, 2020 11:32 am
by Bob78164
Bob Juch wrote: ↑Fri May 01, 2020 9:31 am
The plaintiff's legal fees are outrageous! Nevertheless, while I agree with the appeal court's decision based on prior case law, I think it's unfair. The plaintiff was denied rest breaks and meal breaks and worked during that time. She was ultimately paid for that time. In what world does that not constitute wages?
She was paid for her time while she worked. She claimed she was denied meal and rest breaks. We don't believe her, and we got her to drop her wrongful termination case by compelling her to produce documents demonstrating that she had told some whoppers under oath. The best of them was when she claimed at her deposition that she'd been unable to find a job, but her documents showed her turning down not one but two job offers.
We just decided to pay her around $15,000 (more or less her maximum recovery on those claims) because that was cheaper than going through trial. We did that because we knew that we weren't vulnerable to a fee award.
Bear in mind that she never claimed she wasn't paid for the time she worked. Her claim was that she didn't get the opportunity to take 10-minute rest breaks. Under California law, the remedy for a missed break is an extra hour of pay, but that's a statutory penalty, not compensation for time worked. So it really isn't wages. --Bob
Re: Victory
Posted: Fri May 01, 2020 11:59 am
by Bob Juch
Bob78164 wrote: ↑Fri May 01, 2020 11:32 am
Bob Juch wrote: ↑Fri May 01, 2020 9:31 am
The plaintiff's legal fees are outrageous! Nevertheless, while I agree with the appeal court's decision based on prior case law, I think it's unfair. The plaintiff was denied rest breaks and meal breaks and worked during that time. She was ultimately paid for that time. In what world does that not constitute wages?
She was paid for her time while she worked. She claimed she was denied meal and rest breaks. We don't believe her, and we got her to drop her wrongful termination case by compelling her to produce documents demonstrating that she had told some whoppers under oath. The best of them was when she claimed at her deposition that she'd been unable to find a job, but her documents showed her turning down not one but two job offers.
We just decided to pay her around $15,000 (more or less her maximum recovery on those claims) because that was cheaper than going through trial. We did that because we knew that we weren't vulnerable to a fee award.
Bear in mind that she never claimed she wasn't paid for the time she worked. Her claim was that she didn't get the opportunity to take 10-minute rest breaks. Under California law, the remedy for a missed break is an extra hour of pay, but that's a statutory penalty, not compensation for time worked. So it really isn't wages. --Bob
Oh, if she lied her ass off, that's different. Never mind.
Re: Victory
Posted: Fri May 22, 2020 3:48 pm
by Bob78164
My victory
has now been certified for publication. I think it's my third published appellate decision. I'm 2-1 in those decisions. --Bob