Shih v. Lien
Appellants Eric W. Lien (Lien) and Pi-Ching Yen (Yen) (collectively, Lien/Yen) appeal from the trial courts April 5, 2006 order determining prevailing party status and awarding attorney fees and costs. The court designated respondents[1](collectively, Woo) as the prevailing party in the underlying contract dispute, and awarded Woo $440,000 in attorney fees and $13,224.22 in costs. Lien/Yen contend that the court erred by (1) concluding that this courts decisions in prior appeals in this matter limited the litigation proceedings the court could consider in determining the prevailing party, and (2) separating the litigation into two phases and determining a prevailing party for each phase. Court agree with Lien/Yens contentions, and reverse and remand to the trial court to determine the prevailing party, if any, based on the final results of the litigation as a whole and to award appropriate attorney fees.
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