CANIZALES MACIAS VS AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO., INC.

Fees on Fees: Under Ketchum v. Moses, absent circumstances rendering the award unjust, fees recoverable ordinarily include compensation for all hours reasonably spent, including those necessary to establish and defend the fee claim. (24 Cal.4th 1122.) An award of attorney fees to a prevailing anti-SLAPP defendant properly includes fees incurred in connection with litigating the fee award itself. (569 East County supra 6 Cal.App.5th at 433.)

The Court exercises its discretion to award a reasonable amount of fees-on-fees, but finds that the hours claimed for fee-motion work are excessive. The Court allows 16 hours total at a blended rate of $300/hour, for a fees-on-fees award of $4,800.00.

Applying all adjustments, exclusion of Category D entries, reduction of Category B allocations to 50%, exclusion and separate treatment of fee-motion work, a 25% reduction in Mr. Easter’s hours, and an across-the-board reduction to account for the unexplained inflation of claimed hours and the deficiencies in the submission, the Court determines the reasonable lodestar for anti-SLAPP merits work to be $30,000.00. (Syers Properties III, Inc. v. Rankin (2014) 226 Cal.App.4th 691, 700 [“the trial judge . . . was well able to evaluate whether the time expended by counsel in this case, given its complexity and other factors, was reasonable”].)

Motion for Attorney’s Fees GRANTED. Attorney’s Fees in the amount of $30,000.00, fees on fees for $4,800.00 and costs of $126.90 for a total award of $34,926.90.

2. CASE # CASE NAME HEARING NAME MOTION FOR JUDGMENT ON THE PLEADINGS ON COMPLAINT FOR CANIZALES MACIAS VS BREACH OF CONTRACT/WARRANTY CVPS2408387 AMERICAN HONDA (OVER $35,000) OF SIPATLY E. MOTOR CO., INC. CANIZALES MACIAS BY AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO., INC.

Tentative Ruling: Motion for Judgment on Pleadings GRANTED without leave to amend. No opposition filed by Plaintiffs.

The court takes judicial notice of the order consolidating CVPS 2408387 and CVRI 2504368 on February 4, 2026. The court takes judicial notice of the order deeming matters admitted against Plaintiffs Alexzandra Maciel and Sipatly E. Canizales Macias on January 26, 2026.