In California real estate Partition actions, Courts are able to award reasonable attorney fees “incurred or paid by a party for the common benefit.” CCP §874.040. This applies even in contested partition suits. It is all in the court’s discretion – fees incurred by a defendant to a partition action…
Parties in real estate lawsuits in California can enter formal settlement agreements, which become enforceable by the court under Code of Civ. Proc. Section 664.6. A judgment may be entered, but the court retains jurisdiction to enforce the agreement without the necessity of filing a new lawsuit. The trial court…
A settlement agreement resulting in entry of a judgment results in a ‘stipulated’ or ‘consent’ judgment, which is not appealable. However, settlement agreements often include provisions for future enforcement – such as penalties, fines, and injunctive relief. But once a judgment is entered the trial court loses jurisdiction to consider…
In my prior post, I discussed a decision concerning a settlement that had had a large penalty for failing to make payments. The court found that it was an unenforceable illegal penalty, and not a legitimate liquidated damages provision. Liquidated damages are damages whose amount the parties agree during the…
In a recent California case, a homeowner sued their community Homeowner’s Association (“HOA”) for failing to enforce the Conditions, Covenants, and Restrictions (CC&Rs). They also sued other homeowners, who supposedly violated the restrictions. Apparently the parties had tentatively reached a settlement outside court just before the day of trial, so…
California law provides a convenient way for parties in a lawsuit who reach a settlement to allow the court to enforce the settlement agreement, even if the settlement will take years to perform. Code of Civil Procedure section 664.6 provides that if parties to pending litigation agree in a signed…