Reader and canyon guy Paul Ayers give us the facts (and a little opinion) on the appeal of the La Vina case:
On March 5, 2010, oral argument in the La Vina HOA’s appeal of the judgment and attorney’s fees award in the case of County of Los Angeles v. La Vina Homeowner’s Assn. will be heard by Division 8 of the Second District, California Court of Appeal. The argument is scheduled for 9 a.m. at the Ronald Reagan State Building 300 South Spring Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013 [the corner of 3rd & Spring Streets]; public parking is available across the street from the building. Generally, a number of cases are scheduled for oral argument on any given morning; there is no way to predict where the La Vina case will be placed on the calendar. Oral argument is interesting as it usually involves back and forth between the attorneys and the justices on the key issues of the case. Just remember that if you choose to attend to dress appropriately and respect the decorum of the court.
In a welcome development, the Attorney General of the State of California on behalf of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy has decided to support the County of Los Angeles defense of the HOA’s appeal by filing a brief in support of the County’s position and arranging to participate in oral argument.
The Court of Appeal has 90 days to file an opinion after submission at oral argument. If a party disagrees with the decision, they can apply for review by the Supreme Court, but the odds are very much against the Supremes taking the case up. Assuming that the Court of Appeals rules in favor of the County which the odds, if nothing else, favor, the case will be sent back to Judge De Vanon for enforcement of the judgment and attorneys fee award. All things being equal I would say La Vina residents will start writing attorneys fees assessment checks sometime this fall.
