Judge Mark E. Windham, Case Number: 21STLC05733, Date: 2023-10-23 Tentative Ruling

Judge: Mark E. Windham, Case: 21STLC05733, Date: 2023-10-23 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 21STLC05733 Hearing Date: March 26, 2024 Dept: 26

Pellegrin v. Georgina Capital, Inc., et al.

MOTION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES AND COSTS

(CCP § 685.040, et seq.)

TENTATIVE RULING:

Plaintiff Katherina Pellegrin’s Motion to Amend Judgment is GRANTED. THE JUDGMENT IS AMENDED TO ADD AN AWARD OF ATTORNEY’S FEES IN THE AMOUNT OF $3,500.00.

ANALYSIS:

On August 3, 2021, Plaintiff Katherina Pellegrin (“Plaintiff”) filed the instant action for breach of lease agreement and related claims against Defendants Georgina Capital, Inc. and Todd M. Smith (“Defendants”). Following Defendants’ failure to file a responsive pleading, default judgment was entered in Plaintiff’s favor on May 20, 2022. (Default Judgment 05/20/22.) The Court awarded Plaintiff attorney’s fees with the judgment in the amount of $1,006.74. (Default Judgment, 05/20/22, p. 2:14-15.)

Plaintiff filed a motion to amend judgment on August 28, 2023, which the Court denied without prejudice following an order to show cause regarding the status of Plaintiff’s counsel. (Minute Order, 11/20/23.) Plaintiff filed the instant renewed Motion to Amend Judgment on January 18, 2024. The hearing originally set for March 20, 2024 was continued to March 26, 2024. (Minute Order, 03/20/24.) To date, no opposition has been filed.

Discussion

Plaintiff’s Motion to Amend Judgment seeks to add an award of post-judgment attorney’s fees to the judgment, pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure sections 685.070 and 685.080. “The judgment creditor may claim under this section the following costs of enforcing a judgment: . . . (6) Attorney's fees, if allowed by Section 685.040.” (Code Civ. Proc., § 685.070, subd. (a).) Code of Civil Procedure, section 685.040 states: “The judgment creditor is entitled to the reasonable and necessary costs of enforcing a judgment. Attorney’s fees incurred in enforcing a judgment are not included in costs collectible under this title unless otherwise provided by law. Attorney’s fees incurred in enforcing a judgment are included as costs collectible under this title if the underlying judgment includes an award of attorney’s fees to the judgment creditor pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (10) of subdivision (a) of Section 1033.5.” Also, the motion must be brought within two years of the incurred costs. (Code Civ. Proc., § 685.080, subd. (a).)

The Court, previously having awarded Plaintiff attorney’s fees on the judgment, finds that post-judgment attorney’s fees may be awarded. Plaintiff seeks an award of $8,429.35. (Motion, Gomez Decl., Exh. 3, p. 5.) The moving party bears the burden of proof with respect to attorney’s fees. (Code Civ. Proc., § 1033.5, subd. (c)(5)(A).) Specifically, a party seeking fees has the burden of showing the fees incurred are “allowable,” are “reasonably necessary to the conduct of the litigation,” and are “reasonable in amount.” (Levy v. Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. (1992) 4 Cal.App.4th 807, 816.) The Court’s objective is to award attorney’s fees at the fair market value based on the particular action. (Ketchum v. Moses (2001) 24 Cal.4th 1122, 1132.) “The reasonable hourly rate is that prevailing in the community for similar work.” (PLCM Group v. Drexler (2000) 22 Cal.4th 1084, 1095.) “‘[T]he fee setting inquiry in California ordinarily begins with the ‘lodestar,’ i.e., the number of hours reasonably expended multiplied by the reasonable hourly rate . . . .’” (Ketchum v. Moses (2001) 24 Cal.4th 1122, 1134.)

The Motion is not supported by a declaration that sets forth the number of attorney hours expended, nor the attorney’s reasonable hourly rate. Instead, the supporting declaration only provides a description of the work performed by Plaintiff’s counsel upon being hired: filing and recording an abstract of judgment; filing an application for issuance of a writ of execution; sending notice of the writ of execution to the Sheriff’s Department; filing an application and order for appearance and examination; filing a memorandum of costs after judgment; filing the first motion to amend judgment and appearing for the hearing; filing a declaration for and appearing at the order to show cause. (Motion, Gomez Decl., ¶¶8-17.) The Court finds that a reasonable amount of time to have spent on these tasks was ten hours, and a reasonable hourly rate for a limited jurisdiction breach of contract action is $350.00. Therefore, Plaintiff is awarded attorney’s fees of $3,500.00.

Conclusion

Plaintiff Katherina Pellegrin’s Motion to Amend Judgment is GRANTED. THE JUDGMENT IS AMENDED TO ADD AN AWARD OF ATTORNEY’S FEES IN THE AMOUNT OF $3,500.00.

Court clerk to give notice.