Bevis v. Terrace View Partners, LP, 244 Cal. Rptr. 3d 797 (2019)

Citation: Bevis v. Terrace View Partners, LP, 244 Cal. Rptr. 3d 797 (2019)
Parent Document: Bevis v. Terrace View Partners, LP, 244 Cal. Rptr. 3d 797 (2019)
Jurisdiction: California (state)
Effective Date: 2019-02-28
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/6240337/bevis-v-terrace-view-partners-lp/ ↗

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Defendants appeal from the judgment and postjudgment order awarding plaintiffs' attorney fees and plaintiffs appeal from the postjudgment order reducing the jury's award of punitive damages. Defendants contend: (1) the amount of rent they charged plaintiffs under their lease and month-to-month rental agreements cannot be restricted in the absence of a rent control ordinance; (2) there was insufficient evidence to support the verdict on plaintiffs' cause of action for intentional interference with property rights; (3) the *802court prejudicially erred by giving an erroneous special instruction on the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing; (4) there was insufficient evidence to support the verdict on plaintiffs' cause of action for breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing under the correct legal standards; (5) the court abused its discretion in denying defendants' request to bifurcate the trial of plaintiffs' equitable cause of action for violation of the UCL; (6) the court prejudicially erred by changing its ruling on the legality of the catch-up provision in defendants' lease after trial; (7) the court erred in ruling the catch-up provision was unfair under the UCL; (8) the court's ruling that defendants violated the UCL cannot be upheld under the fraud prong of the UCL; (9) the court erred in denying Terrace View's motion for new trial on the ground of irregularity of the proceedings based on plaintiffs' counsel's improper opening and closing argument; (10) the jury's award of economic damages of $ 750,000 for diminution of property value, overpayment of rent, and/or interference with use and enjoyment of homes was not sufficiently supported by the evidence; (11) the award of punitive damages was not sufficiently supported by evidence of malice, oppression, or fraud; and (12) the court abused its discretion by awarding plaintiffs' full recovery of attorney fees despite their failure to prevail on some of their claims and the unavailability of attorney fees for their UCL cause of action, and by not reducing plaintiffs' fee award by the amount they billed for unadjudicated medical treatment claims and their unsuccessful class certification motion; and (13) the court erred in awarding an enhancement to the lodestar amount of plaintiffs' attorney fees.

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