Robles v. Emp't Dev. Dep't

• Decision Date: 31 July 2019
• Docket Number: A148803
• Citation: 38 Cal.App.5th 191,250 Cal.Rptr.3d 611
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
• Parties: Jose ROBLES, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. EMPLOYMENT DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT et al., Defendants and Respondents.

38 Cal.App.5th 191

250 Cal.Rptr.3d 611

Jose ROBLES, Plaintiff and Appellant,

v.EMPLOYMENT DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT et al., Defendants and Respondents.

A148803

Court of Appeal, First District, Division 4, California.

Filed July 31, 2019

Gary S. Garfinkle, Lafayette, Maria J. Garfinkle, Lafayette, Richard Morse Pearl, Berkeley, for Petitioner and Respondent

Xavier Becerra, Attorney General of California, Susan M. Carson, Supervising Deputy Attorney General, Carolyn O. Tsai, Deputy Attorney General, for Appellant and Respondent

BROWN, J.

This is the third chapter in our appellate review of this controversy, which involves the wrongful denial of unemployment benefits by respondents Employment Development Department (EDD) and the California Unemployment Insurance Board (Board). After both EDD and the Board rejected a claim for unemployment benefits filed by Jose Robles—and the trial court denied Robles's petition for writ of mandate challenging this administrative decision—we issued our first opinion in the matter, concluding that Robles was entitled to unemployment benefits as a matter of law. (See Robles v. Employment Development Dept. (2012) 207 Cal.App.4th 1029, 144 Cal.Rptr.3d 36 ( Robles I ).) Three years later, EDD continued to refuse to award Robles all of the benefits to which he would have been entitled absent its error, despite multiple court orders that it do so. As a result, we filed a second opinion, upholding the trial court's order demanding immediate payment by EDD to Robles of all withheld benefits, costs, and interest. (See Robles v. Employment Development Dept. (2015) 236 Cal.App.4th 530, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707 ( Robles II ).)

After EDD paid the amounts due, Robles filed a motion in the trial court for attorney fees under California's private attorney general statute, Code of Civil Procedure section 1021.5 ( section 1021.5 ). He now appeals the trial court's order denying in part his fee request. Because we agree with Robles that the trial court improperly limited the scope of permissible fees in this case to those incurred solely in connection with the Robles II litigation, we affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand for further proceedings in accordance with this opinion.

BACKGROUND

The lengthy history of this litigation is described in detail in our two previous published decisions in this matter. ( Robles I , supra , 207 Cal.App.4th at pp. 1032–1034, 144 Cal.Rptr.3d 36 and Robles II , supra , 236 Cal.App.4th at pp. 534–545, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.) We summarize only the facts relevant to this most recent appellate challenge.

Robles was terminated from his employment in January 2010 after he tried to use his annual employee shoe allowance to buy a pair of shoes for an injured friend. Robles figured that his friend needed the shoes more than he did, as Robles already had a good pair of safety shoes. His intent was to help a friend without jeopardizing his employer. When the store clerk told Robles that he could not go through with his plan, however, he dropped it. He was fired nonetheless. ( Robles II , supra , 236 Cal.App.4th at p. 534, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.)

Robles applied to EDD for unemployment benefits, but his claim was denied. Although his employer provided no information regarding the incident, EDD concluded Robles was ineligible for benefits because he broke a reasonable employer rule. Robles filed an administrative appeal, and the administrative law judge (ALJ) upheld the EDD determination, finding " ‘that Robles was discharged for misconduct connected with work.’ " ( Id. at p. 536, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.) Robles next appealed to the Board, which endorsed the ALJ decision, noting that "an employee's misappropriation of employer property is conclusive evidence of misconduct." ( Ibid. )

Robles initially sought advice from Maria Garfinkle before the ALJ hearing. After the ALJ upheld the EDD determination, Maria and Gary Garfinkle (collectively, Garfinkle) represented Robles pro bono before the Board. Thereafter, they continued to represent Robles on a pro bono basis, filing a petition for a writ of administrative mandate. The trial court denied the petition, concluding that the administrative findings were supported by the weight of the evidence. Robles appealed. ( Ibid. )

In June 2012, "we issued our opinion in Robles I , holding that Robles's conduct in this case—which evinced at most a good faith error in judgment—was insufficient to support a finding of misconduct within the meaning of section 1256 of the Unemployment Insurance Code ( section 1256 )." ( Robles II , supra , 236 Cal.App.4th at p. 536, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.) Rather, "employee behavior constitutes misconduct for purposes of section 1256 only if it somehow demonstrates culpability or bad faith—i.e., a willful or wanton disregard of an employer's interests." ( Ibid. ) We additionally noted that, under section 1256, an employee is presumed to have been discharged for reasons other than misconduct, absent written notice from the employer to the contrary. Because Robles's employer had presented no evidence to rebut the statutory presumption, we found that the EDD determination was erroneous on this additional ground. (Id. at p. 537, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.) We therefore "reversed the trial court's judgment and directed it to issue a writ of mandate ordering EDD and the Board ‘to award Robles the unemployment insurance benefits withheld plus interest on those benefits under Civil Code section 3287, subdivision (a).’ " ( Ibid. )

Although initially unpublished, we issued an order to publish Robles I in July 2012, after receiving requests for publication from Garfinkle, the Legal Aid Society-Employment Law Center, the Civil Justice Law Clinic at Hastings School of Law, and an attorney who had a client in similar circumstances.

In September 2012, the trial court on remand issued a writ of administrative mandamus (Writ), commanding EDD and the Board to set aside their previous decisions and to "award to Robles ‘the unemployment insurance benefits that were withheld beginning January 5, 2010 and including extensions under state and federal law, plus interest on those benefits under Civil Code section 3287, subdivision (a).’ " ( Robles II, supra , 236 Cal.App.4th at p. 538, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.) Several days later, the Board complied, setting aside its previous determination and issuing a new decision in accordance with Robles I and the Writ. The Board concluded that Robles was not disqualified from receiving unemployment insurance benefits and that any benefits that were withheld were payable, with interest. ( Ibid. )

By contrast, EDD and its counsel consistently rebuffed all efforts by Garfinkle to ensure that his client was promptly paid the wrongfully withheld benefits and interest. We will not here relate the specifics of EDD's "stubborn refusal" to comply with the terms of Robles I . ( Robles II , supra , 236 Cal.App.4th at pp. 538–542, 553, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.) Suffice it to say that after months of bureaucratic runaround, Robles filed a motion in May 2013 to enforce full compliance with the Writ. ( Id. at pp. 542–543, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.) In connection with his enforcement motion, Robles submitted declarations attesting to the fact that he had been unemployed since his January 2010 termination date, despite his availability for and diligent attempts to obtain employment. Because he had been unable to obtain from EDD an analysis of the amounts he was owed beyond an initial $12,240 payment EDD sent him after the Robles I remand, Robles submitted with the motion documentation calculating a balance due of over $45,000. ( Id. at pp. 540, 542–543, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.)

EDD defended its compliance with the Writ, arguing before the trial court that Robles was not eligible for benefits for weeks where he did not complete " ‘the necessary paperwork to certify that he was available for work but remained unemployed despite diligently searching for work.’ " ( Robles II , supra , 236 Cal.App.4th at p. 544, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.) The trial court was not persuaded and ordered EDD to pay Robles an additional $45,560.39 in benefits, interest, and costs. It also ordered EDD to pay a $1,000 fine pursuant to section 1097 of the Code of Civil Procedure for disobeying the Writ (Enforcement Order). EDD appealed. ( Id. at p. 545, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707.)

We upheld the trial court's Enforcement Order in our published decision in Robles II , 236 Cal.App.4th 530, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707. Noting that "the prompt payment of benefits is the ‘ "very essence" ’ of the unemployment compensation insurance program" ( id. at p. 546, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707 ), that "Robles had shown himself substantively eligible for the identified benefits by attesting to his availability, and diligent search, for work" ( id. at p. 552, 186 Cal.Rptr.3d 707 ), and that "EDD's chosen process in response to the Writ had utterly failed to result in the timely payment of all of the benefits to which Robles was entitled" ( ibid. ), we held that the trial court properly ordered the immediate payment of benefits without requiring Robles to jump any additional procedural hurdles ( ibid. ). As a result, EDD paid the remaining amounts owed, resulting in Robles' total recovery of $66,214.53.

In November 2015, Garfinkle filed a motion in the trial court, seeking reasonable attorney fees pursuant to California's private attorney general statute, section 1021.5. The motion sought slightly over $1,000,000 in fees for legal services from Garfinkle's first involvement in the case in 2010 to the present. The trial court issued an order in March 2016 awarding $365,660.94 in fees, limiting recovery to legal services furnished in connection with the Robles II phase of the litigation. Shortly thereafter, Garfinkle filed a motion seeking a limited new trial and/or modification of the fee award, citing to certain perceived errors and omissions in the award with respect to hours compensated, hourly rate, and the multiplier applied....