Lawyer responds with retaliation claim when employer files malpractice suit against her
A recent case arose from an attorney’s claim for unpaid wages, filed in 2005 with California’s labor commissioner and against her employer. The court initially awarded her nearly $13,000. Years later, her award was raised to $101,000.
The attorney’s employer – 1538 Cahuenga Partners, LLC – and its principal filed a malpractice suit against her. She filed a retaliation claim with the commissioner, as well as a cross-complaint seeking indemnity for legal expenses.
The commissioner sued Cahuenga and asked for damages for the attorney’s defense costs in the retaliation claim.
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These cases were consolidated. In all claims, the attorney and the commissioner won and became judgment creditors. In 2010, the attorney brought a motion to add her employer’s principal to the judgment so that he could be considered a judgment debtor.
The trial court and the California Court of Appeal refused to add the principal. In 2012, an amended judgment awarded the commissioner over $297,000 and awarded the attorney over $101,000, which would be offset against any recovery by the commissioner.
For years, the commissioner and the attorney unsuccessfully tried enforcing this amended judgment. They applied for orders compelling certain individuals and entities – namely, Cahuenga’s principal, a paralegal who used to...
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