California Court of Appeals Finds $493k Award of Attorneys Fees Under FEHA was Not in Error

-

On 1/8/25, the California Court of Appeal issued a ruling finding that an employee was a "prevailing party" and affirming the fee award against her supervisor, where the parties settled.  The trial court found her lawsuit was time-barred but the Supreme Court later reversed and found the limitations period began when the employee knew or should have known of the adverse promotion decision (21 Cal. 5th 918). Following remand, the California Court of Appeals ordered costs on appeal for the employee.  In the trial court, the employee asked for $526,476 in attorneys' fees under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), and the trial court awarded $493,577.  A notice of appeal was filed with respect to the attorneys' fees award, but the parties settled before trial.  The Court of Appeals noted that considerable deference was owed to the trial court and affirmed the award of attorneys' fees, although it found the trial court had erred by awarding fees before trial, though the error was harmless in light of the settlement. Finally, the Court found that the trial court used a reasonable multiplier and found that the size of the award was not in error:

https://courts.ca.gov/opinion/b320574 

Popular posts from this blog

National Labor Relations Board's (NLRB) DEI Program Issues "Inclusive Writing Guide"

-
 On 1/7/25, the National Labor Relations Board instituted an "Inclusive Writing Guide" for NLRB employees  to follow internally and externally, as part of the NLRB's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Program. In the "Inclusive Writing Guide," the NLRB advises that "disability" should be used instead of the word "handicap," and that the words "deficit," "defect," "abnormality," "problem," and "normal," should not be used. The "Inclusive Writing Guide" further advises that the definition of "person of color" or "POC" notes that this term should be used instead of "racial minorities" and includes "all non-White races."  The "Inclusive Writing Guide" further notes that "[a]lmost everyone has personal gender pronouns" and cautions against "deadnaming": https://www.nlrb.gov/sites/default/files/attachments/pa...
Read more

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)'s San Francisco District Appoints U.C. San Diego Alumni As Director

-
On 1/13/25, the  U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) a ppointed  Christopher Green as  director of the agency’s San Francisco District.  Green previously worked  as a director in the agency’s Albuquerque and San Diego local offices. He began his career at the EEOC as an investigator in the Oakland office, where he worked for six years. Since 2020, he also served as lead instructor for the EEOC’s national investigator training program: https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/christopher-green-appointed-director-eeocs-san-francisco-district
Read more