Court of Appeal Adopts Abuse of Discreton Standard for Review of Family Code...
In Marriage of Feldman, case no. D047896 (4th Dist. July 20, 2007, certified for publication August 7, 2007), the Court of Appeal upholds a whopping $250,000 in sanctions and $140,000 in attorney fees...
View ArticleStudy of Sanctions in Appellate Proceedings
Ben Shatz, whom I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and corresponding with from time to time, has co-authored (with JoAnne Sweeny) an article recently published as “The Price of Frivolity: A Longitudinal...
View ArticleAn Attorney’s Individual Right to Appeal Court Criticism
This post at Split Circuits excerpts a recent Federal Circuit case noting a split among the circuits as to when an attorney in a federal case has a right to appeal separately from his or her client....
View ArticleFollow the Rules – A Lesson from the Ninth
Today’s decision in Sekiya v. Gates, case no. 06-15887 (9th Cir. November 29, 2007) is a reminder that the dismissal sanction is lurking out there for any parties to an appeal that fail to follow the...
View ArticleRare Frivolous Appeal Sanction Levied
A few months ago, I told you how a study by Ben Shatz and Joanne Sweeny in Whittier Law Review disclosed just how rarely sanctions are levied in the Court of Appeal. But “rarely” doesn’t mean “never,”...
View ArticleListen to the Court the First Time
More chutzpah on appeal, this time in United States v. Collins, case no. 05-4708 (7th Cir., Dec. 14, 2007). A little out of my usual jurisdiction, but so outrageous I had to tell you about it (and once...
View ArticleA Disregard for Fiduciary Duties that is “Without Precedent”
Picture this: You represent the defendant in a lawsuit. You don’t have time to handle his case — indeed, you admit as much on the record — and the court imposes terminating sanctions against your...
View ArticleHow to get sanctioned on appeal
The imposition of monetary sanctions on appeal is a rare occurrence . . . you almost have to work at it. If someone were actually trying to get tagged for many thousands of dollars for filing a...
View ArticleThoughts on publication of opinions imposing appellate sanctions for...
This recent Southern California Appellate News post by Ben Shatz led me to a case that got me thinking further about the utility of publishing opinions imposing appellate sanctions. More than six years...
View ArticleEven disobedience of trial courts in other states can get your California...
Last Thursday’s decision in Stoltenberg v. Ampton Investments Inc., case no. B235731 (2d. Dist. April 4, 2013) demonstrates the hazards of being unable to stay enforcement of a money judgment against...
View ArticleHow the nature of your appellate challenge can affect whether your appeal is...
The disentitlement doctrine allows a court of appeal to dismiss an appeal as a sanction for the appellant’s refusal to comply with trial court orders that remain in force while the appeal is pending....
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Sixth District Court of Appeal offers the legislature some advice on amending...
A different kind of SLAP (Photo courtesy of Gabe via Compfight) If you just lost your appeal, handled by attorneys at a high-powered law firm, with fees approaching – oh, heck, who knows, but three...
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