Former President of Association of California Insurance Companies Joins Barger & Wolen

Posted on June 15, 2011 by Barger & Wolen LLP

Firm to Expand California Footprint with New Sacramento Office

Sam Sorich, the former president of the Association of California Insurance Companies (ACIC), California’s longest established property/casualty insurance trade association, joins Barger & Wolen as Of Counsel on June 15, 2011. Mr. Sorich, who has been in the insurance industry for more than 30 years, will also open and head the law firm’s new Sacramento office. 

“After my retirement from the ACIC, I was looking for an opportunity to continue to serve the insurance industry and its customers. Joining Barger & Wolen was the perfect opportunity to do that,” Sam Sorich says. “Barger & Wolen is an extraordinary firm that has incredible presence and influence in the insurance industry and has successfully represented many of ACIC’s 300 members.”

As ACIC president, Sorich directed the group’s legislative, regulatory and litigation activities. His role with Barger & Wolen will focus on expanding the firm’s presence and relationships in Sacramento particularly with the Department of Insurance and other state agencies. Although Barger & Wolen is not new to Sacramento, due to its representation and regulatory work before the Department of Insurance, Sorich will become a liaison for the firm’s clients within the influential circles of the state’s capital. 

“This new move solidifies our presence in Sacramento, which is a center of influence in California for the insurance industry,” says Steven Weinstein, chairman of Barger & Wolen. “The addition of Sam not only shows our understanding of our client’s business practices and needs, but it demonstrates our leadership in the industry.”

Under his direction at ACIC, Sorich and ACIC played a key role in the crafting and regulatory implementation of the 2003-2004 workers’ compensation reforms, the development of regulations that implement Proposition 103's provisions on auto insurance rating and underwriting, litigation that determines the scope of the insurance commissioner's authority over homeowners insurance underwriting, and legislation that provides consumers with effective disclosures regarding insurance coverage. 

Robert Hogeboom, one of the leaders of the firm’s regulatory practice, adds: “Sam Sorich is well respected by the insurance industry and regulators throughout the country. He will continue to play a key role in the regulatory work that we do for insurance companies at the state and federal levels.”

Sorich is a graduate of the University of Illinois College of Law. Before beginning his insurance career, Sorich served as a Peace Corps volunteer and an assistant attorney general in the office of the Illinois Attorney General. Sorich is a member of the Illinois Bar and the Hawaii Bar.

Originally posted in Barger & Wolen's Insurance Litigation & Regulatory Law blog.

Pro Se Attorney Litigants are Not Eligible for an Award of Attorney Fees

Posted on June 14, 2011 by David J. McMahon

In Carpenter & Zuckerman v. Cohen, 2011 DJDAR 6665 (2011), the Second District California Court of Appeal decided an interesting attorney fee case. The fee dispute arose out of litigation between two law firms. 

After being sued, one firm, Personal Injury Solutions Inc. (Personal Injury), filed a cross‑complaint against another law firm named Carpenter & Zuckerman LLC (Carpenter). The cross‑complaint alleged causes of action for interference with economic advantage and defamation. The trial court granted Carpenter’s special motion to strike and awarded the firm its reasonable attorney fees. Personal Injury appealed from the order and the trial court’s award of attorney fees as costs.

The appeal filed by Personal Injury was ruled to be untimely, and the award of fees, but not the amount, was affirmed, and the matter was remanded for further proceedings at the trial court level. 

Carpenter submitted a memorandum of costs in the trial court, listing a single cost item in the sum of $33,168.75 for the reasonable attorney fees incurred in the litigation. Personal Injury moved to tax costs, contending that Carpenter was not entitled to attorney fees under California law, because the firm represented itself on appeal.

Carpenter opposed the motion. The firm argued that they had retained an associate of the firm, attorney Candice Klein, to represent them. The court observed that although she was not a partner at the firm, she was an associate. The trial court concluded that since Klein was an associate who was closely affiliated with the firm, Carpenter was not entitled to recover attorney fees.

The Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court’s decision. 

The appellate court stated that because pro se attorney litigants do not incur an obligation to pay attorney fees when representing themselves, such attorney litigants are not entitled to recover attorney fees under Civil Code Section 1717.

Family Law Judge Has the Authority to Award "Just and Reasonable" Attorney Fees

Posted on June 9, 2011 by David J. McMahon

In Kevin Q. v. Lauren W., 2011 DJDAR 6909 (2011), the California Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed the grant of an attorney fee award to a husband in a paternity case.

A husband was involved in a paternity suit with his ex wife. The case was initially decided in the husband’s favor, but was later reversed. Both sides incurred substantial attorney fees in litigating the dispute. The wife incurred a total of $311,242 in fees, compared to the husband’ fees of $141,384. The wife’s attorney charged $575 per hour compared to the husband’s counsel, who worked at rate of $400 an hour. The wife filed a motion seeking an order requiring the husband to pay her fees.

The husband filed objections to the motion and pointed out that the attorney had billed the wife a total of $4,200 in driving time for court appearances. In response, and in an effort to bolster the equitable case in support of a fee award, the wife claimed she was currently unemployed and had no income. She did disclose $8,700 in monthly support from “other sources.” The court considered the support income in determining whether she had the current ability to pay the fees. The court concluded that she had the necessary resources and denied her motion.

The appellate court affirmed the lower court’s decision. 

The Court of Appeal held that the trial court has the discretion to order an award of reasonable attorney fees in a situation such as the one posed. However, in making the decision, the trial court is required to ask whether the award is “just and reasonable under the relative circumstances of the respective parties.”

The Court of Appeal concluded that the trial judge performed the appropriate evaluation of the parties’ respective abilities to pay. The court also concluded that the support disclosed in the wife’s application was relevant to the issue of her need and ability to pay fees. The Court of Appeal affirmed the decision on this basis.

Attorney Fee Award is Reversed Where It is Rendered Without Proper Statutory Authorization

Posted on June 2, 2011 by David J. McMahon

In Ilshin Investment Co. Ltd. v. Buena Vista Home Entertainment Inc., 2011 DJDAR 6917 (2011), the California Second District Court of Appeal reversed an award of attorney fees. The court ruled that the award was not proper where it lacked the requisite statutory support.

In 1993 an investment company (“Ilshin”) loaned money to a movie producer (“Patriot, Inc.”) to create a film. After completion of the project, Patriot was not able to repay the loan. Subsequently, Patriot entered into an exclusive agreement for the film’s home video distribution with Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Inc. (“Buena Vista”).

The agreement required Buena Vista to obtain Patriot’s consent before incurring distribution expenses over $900,000. The film’s sales exceeded the parties’ expectations. Distribution income reached almost $13.5 million. Buena Vista, however, failed to obtain Patriot’s consent to incur expenses over the $900,000 threshold.

Subsequently, Ilshin filed suit against Buena Vista as a judgment creditor for breach of contract. Ilshin alleged that Buena Vista incurred unauthorized distribution costs. The case went to trial and the trial court awarded Ilshin $1,439,203.08 in attorney fees pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure Section 701.020(c), as well as other damages which were proved at trial. Buena Vista appealed the judgment, including the fee award.

The Court of Appeal reversed the award of attorney fees. The court noted that attorney fees are not recoverable unless the award is expressly authorized by either statute or a valid contract.  The court noted that Ilshin brought suit under Section 701.280(b), which does not provide a basis for an attorney fee award. For these reasons, the court held that the trial court’s attorney fee award was erroneous.