Cano v. Anaheim Arena Management
Plaintiff and appellant Luz Elena Cano, M.D., appeals from a postjudgment order denying her motion to tax costs and awarding defendant and respondent Anaheim Arena Management, LLC, aka Honda Center (Arena Management) expert witness fees under Code of Civil Procedure section 998. (All statutory references are to the Code of Civil Procedure unless otherwise noted.) Under section 998, Arena Management offered to settle Cano’s personal injury claims for $100,001 and a costs waiver, but Cano rejected that offer. After the trial court granted its summary judgment motion, Arena Management filed a memorandum of costs seeking $18,957 in expert witness fees because Cano failed to obtain a judgment more favorable than the section 998 settlement offer.
Cano contends the trial court abused its discretion in awarding Arena Management expert witness fees because the serious injuries she suffered made the settlement offer unreasonable. Cano, however, failed to show any likelihood Arena Management would have been held liable for her injuries or that Arena Management’s offer bore no relation to the monetary damages she suffered. Accordingly, we find no abuse of discretion and affirm the trial court’s ruling.
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