In Canyon Crest Conservancy v. County of Los Angeles (Kuhn), ordered published March 12, 2020, the Second District Court of Appeal, Division 4 affirmed a trial court decision denying attorney fees under Code of Civil Procedure section 1021.5 to the plaintiff organization. The real party in interest sought to build a residence on his property. The development was on a steep hillside, and would require removing a protected coastal oak tree. The real party obtained permits from the defendant county permitting the development and tree removal. Two of the real party's neighbors established the plaintiff conservancy. The conservancy unsuccessfully appealed the permits administratively. The conservancy then sued the county, alleging violation of the California Environmental Quality Act. To preserve the status quo, the trial court granted an administrative stay of the permit approvals. The real party then asked the county to vacate the permit approvals, on the ground that he could not afford to continue the litigation. The county agreed to do so. The conservancy dismissed its case, then moved for attorney fees. The trial court denied fees on the ground that the conservancy failed to establish any of the elements for recovery of fees under section 1021.5.
The appellate court ruled that the trial court acted within its discretion in ruling that the conservancy failed to establish that it enforced an important right affecting the public interest or conferred a significant benefit on the public. On the first requirement, the trial court acted within its discretion in ruling that the conservancy failed to obtain any additional review of the project, and that merely getting approval stayed and the ultimate result of the developer abandoning the project was not a vindication of the rights he sought. Bringing a viable CEQA action alone was insufficient. Similarly, the trial court could find that obtaining the stay alone did not convey a significant benefit on the public, the lawsuit was dismissed without either an agreement or a ruling that the project would be completed in a different way.
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