In a long-awaited decision, the Florida Supreme Court ruled in Marvin Castellanos v. Next Door Company, et al. that the limitations on attorneys’ fees awarded under Florida’s workers’ Compensation statute violates the due process clause of both the Florida and United States Constitutions. As a result of this holding, attorneys are no longer limited to
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There Can Be Two “Prevailing Parties” in a Single Wage & Hour and Equal Pay Act Lawsuit
On October 14, 2015, the California Second District Court of Appeal held in Sharif v. Mehusa, Inc. that both the employee and the employer can be deemed “prevailing party” for purposes of recovering attorneys’ fees under the Labor Code. Plaintiff, Mahta Sharif, brought an action against her former employer, Mehusa, Inc., for unpaid overtime (Lab. Code, § 1194), unpaid wages (Lab. Code, § 201), and violation of California’s Equal Pay Act (Lab. Code, § 1197.5). She prevailed on her Equal Pay Act claim with the jury awarding her $26,300. Mehusa prevailed on Plaintiff’s overtime and wage claims. Plaintiff filed a cost memorandum and was awarded her costs. She also filed a motion for attorney fees in the amount of $280,432 under Labor Code section 1197.5(g) as the prevailing party on her Equal Pay Act claim. Plaintiff’s attorney fees request consisted of a lodestar amount of $140,216 and a multiplier of two. Mehusa filed a motion for attorney fees and costs under Labor Code section 218.5 in the amount of $36,982.24 as the prevailing party on Plaintiff’s wage claims. Mehusa estimated that 75% of defense counsel’s time was spent defending against Plaintiff’s unsuccessful wage claims.
Continue Reading There Can Be Two “Prevailing Parties” in a Single Wage & Hour and Equal Pay Act Lawsuit
Court of Appeal Affirms Trial Court Award of “Bad Faith” Attorney’s Fees
Readers of this blog may recall our discussion of a “bad faith” attorney’s fees award made by the trial court in the Aerotek v. The Johnson Group case. To view a copy of our previous post, click here. As a refresher, Aerotek sued its former employee and that former employer’s new employer claiming misappropriation…
Attorney Fee Awards in Trade Secret Cases and “Local Community” Rates
As readers of this blog may know, a party prevailing in a trade secret misappropriation case may be entitled to reasonable attorney’s fees if that party can show either that the claim was brought by the plaintiff in bad faith or that the defendant was guilty of willful and malicious misappropriation. The award of attorney’s…
Attorneys’ Fees For “Bad Faith” Trade Secret Claims: How Pre-Discovery Disclosures Can Help
A central issue in all trade secret litigation is the adequacy of a plaintiff’s pre-discovery disclosure of the alleged trade secrets required by California Code of Civil Procedure section 2019.210. Section 2019.210 provides that a plaintiff suing for misappropriation of trade secrets must identify the alleged trade secrets with “reasonable particularity” before commencing discovery. The…