Construction Zone in Manhattan, New York. (Photo: Ryland West/ALM)
It may be impossible to put a price tag on civility, but the Second District Court of Appeals tried to do just that on Tuesday.
A Los Angeles appellate court upheld a $90,000 attorneys' fees award to plaintiffs who argued they were due three times as much. The court said that the trial judge offered good reasons for capping the fees, including the plaintiffs' "incivility."
"Excellent lawyers deserve higher fees, and excellent lawyers are civil," wrote Associate Justice John Shepard Wiley Jr. "Sound logic and bitter experience support these points."
Wiley was joined in the opinion by Presiding Justice Tricia Bigelow and Associate Justice Elizabeth Grimes.
The attorneys' fees dispute stemmed from a home construction lawsuit brought by David and Cheryl Karton against Ari Design & Construction Inc. Several months into the project, the Kartons learned that Ari was not properly licensed or insured and ordered the company to stop work. David Carlton, a Beverly Hills attorney, and Cheryl Karton filed suit in 2016.
After a 3½ day bench trial in 2017, a judge found in favor of the Kartons and awarded them $92,651—the amount they had paid Ari until work stopped—plus a $10,000 penalty and storage fees. The issue then moved to attorneys fees. The couple was represented by David Karton and Joe Abramson of the Law Offices of Joe Abramson.
The Kartons submitted an 11-page brief with more than 400 pages of supplemental briefing arguing that they were owed $287,640 in legal costs for more than 600 hours of work. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Elaine Mandel denied the request, finding that the Kartons had "over-litigated" an otherwise straightforward legal matter.
Mandel also found that David Karton was embroiled in the case as both the homeowner and lawyer.
"The court had reason to conclude embroilment undermined objectivity about the appropriate scale of litigation," Wiley wrote.
Karton called opposing counsel a liar and their comments' "frivolous" and referred to their "improper tactics."
"In short, in this appeal the Kartons have come out swinging, apparently believing the best defense is a good offense," Wiley wrote. "This approach demonstrates the trial court was within its discretion to conclude the Kartons conducted litigation that was less than civil."
The appellate panel concluded that Mandel used sound reasoning in limiting the fees to $90,000.
The justices did reverse the part of the trial court's decision that exempted Ari's surety, Wesco Insurance Co., from liability for the attorneys' fees. Wesco must share in the responsibility for paying the fees, the appellate court said.
Alaina Lancaster
Alaina Lancaster, based in San Francisco, covers disruptive trends and technologies shaping the future of law. She authors the weekly legal futurist newsletter What's Next. Contact her at [email protected]. On Twitter: @a_lancaster3