Legal Opinion
Sukumar v. City of San Diego
California Court of Appeal, 5th District
Decided August 15, 2017No. D071527PublishedCited by 8 opinions
1Opinion of the CourtNares, J.
*454Litigation under the Public Records Act (PRA) ( Gov. Code, 1 § 6250 et seq. ) is one of the rare instances where a losing party may still be deemed a prevailing party entitled to an attorney fee award. This is because the plaintiff has prevailed within the meaning of the PRA when he or she files an action that "results in defendant releasing a copy of a previously withheld document." ( Belth v. Garamendi (1991) 232 Cal.App.3d 896, 898, 283 Cal.Rptr. 829 ( Belth ).)
Thus, a plaintiff need not achieve a favorable final judgment to be a prevailing *421party in PRA litigation. A defendant's voluntary…
2Cases cited11 opinions
- Filarsky v. Superior CourtCalifornia Supreme Court · 2002
- Rogers v. SUPERIOR COURT OF LOS ANGELES CTY.California Court of Appeal · 1993
- Belth v. GaramendiCalifornia Court of Appeal · 1991
- Los Angeles Times v. Alameda Corridor Transportation AuthorityCalifornia Court of Appeal · 2001
- Motorola Commc'n & Elecs., Inc. v. Dep't of Gen. Servs.California Court of Appeal · 1997
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3Cited by8 opinions
- Pasadena Police Officers Ass'n v. City of Pasadena, California Court of Appeal, 5th District2018
- City of San Clemente v. Dept. of TransportationCalifornia Court of Appeal · 2023
- County of San Benito v. Super. Ct.California Court of Appeal · 2023
- Dept. of Water Resources Environmental Impact CasesCalifornia Court of Appeal · 2022
- Kinney v. City of CoronaCalifornia Court of Appeal · 2024
3 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.