Wage Law

The Supreme Court has granted review in Goodman v. Lozano (2008) 159 Cal.App.4th 1313, now California Supreme Court case no. S162655. Three justices were absent and did not participate, while the others voted unanimously to take up the case. The issue on review is:

Petition for review after the Court of Appeal affirmed an award of attorney fees in a civil action. This case presents the following issue: When a plaintiff settles with one tortfeasor and goes to trial against another but obtains no additional recovery because the amount of damages awarded is less than the setoff amount based on the pretrial settlement, is that plaintiff nevertheless a prevailing party as a matter of law for purposes of an award of fees and costs under Code of Civil Procedure section 1032?

As we mentioned in an earlier post, this isn't a wage and hour case, but�it stands�to�ruin the policy favoring and encouraging settlement of complex cases before trial, so we're watching it.