Walent v. Commission on Professional Competence of the LAUSD

After Nancie Walent successfully challenged her dismissal from employment, the District appealed the award of attorney's fees to Walent. The trial court determined that a lodestar calculation was the appropriate mechanism to determine the reasonable fees to be recovered pursuant to Ketchum v. Moses, and that the rates Walent requested were reasonable market rates. The District argued that the Education Code limited her recovery to fees actually incurred, which precluded the lodestar analysis performed by the trial court. The court concluded that the trial court correctly determined the fee award where California Education Code, section 44944(f)(2) does not preclude the use of the lodestar calculation and the lodestar calculation applied absent a statutory exception. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment. View "Walent v. Commission on Professional Competence of the LAUSD" on Justia Law