Congratulations are in order for Roxana E. Verano!
Roxana, a partner at LBLG, obtained a significant, although rare, victory for our client, Weiss Family Properties, LLC. A former Weiss Properties employee filed a lawsuit alleging claims for disability discrimination and various wage and hour violations. After enduring a second day of grueling deposition testimony, the former employee dismissed her action on the eve of trial.
Weiss Properties authorized our firm to file a motion for attorneys’ fees, and the court granted the motion specifically finding that the former employee’s lawsuit brought under the Fair Employment and Housing Act and the Labor Code was frivolous, groundless and filed in bad faith. The court awarded the employer over $47,000.00 in attorneys’ fees and another $6,000.00 in costs, even after the former employee claimed in a declaration that she had no ability to pay.
As Roxana explained in briefing before the court, the purpose of the motion was not only to recover attorneys’ fees our client was forced to incur in defending itself, but also to act as a deterrent and to send a message to employees that they cannot file frivolous actions against their employers without suffering the consequences.
