Renee Vines, the plaintiff, and O'Reilly Auto Enterprises, LLC, the defendant, are involved in a lawsuit concerning interest on an award of statutory attorneys' fees. The case was filed in the Court of Appeal of the State of California, Second Appellate District, Division Seven with the court case ID B327821 on April 24th, 2024. The dispute revolves around whether interest on the award runs from the first or second attorneys’ fees order.
The plaintiff's legal representation includes Mayall Hurley's William J. Gorham III and Nicholas F. Scardigli while Higgs Fletcher & Mack's John Morris, James M. Peterson, Derek W. Paradis and Steven M. Brunolli represent the defendant. The case originated from an employment dispute where Vines sued his former employer for violations of the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), alleging race- and age-based discrimination, harassment, and retaliation.
Vines initially asked for $253,417 in economic damages and between $1.3 million to $2.3 million in non-economic damages but was awarded only $70,200 by the jury. Subsequently, he moved for $809,681.25 in statutory attorneys’ fees but was granted only $129,540.44.
The plaintiff is seeking judgment for additional interest on attorneys' fees award from September 9th, 2019 rather than June 29th, 2022 which amounts to an additional $138,454.44 in interest.