Trial Judge Failed To Focus On What Husband Had Spent As Well As Failed To Appreciate Ex-Wife Was Both A Respondent And Cross-Appellant.
The 4/1 DCA in Marriage of Fiore & Jimenez, Case No. D074927 (4th Dist., Div. 1 Dec. 20, 2019) (unpublished) reversed a $5,000 Family Code section 2020 “needs based” fees award to ex-wife for necessary attorney appellate services, although she had asked for $65,559. The appellate court concluded that $5,000 was too low of an award given the financial disparity between ex-wife and ex-husband, failing to factor in that (1) husband himself had spent $30,000 on his appeal, and (2) ex-wife was not only a respondent but also a cross-appellant in dissolution appellate proceedings. The fact that she went in pro per at some point on appeal did not require a different result given that she had substantial consultation with an appellate attorney.
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