Weissman Wolff et al. v. Singh
In a prior appeal this court reversed a judgment confirming the arbitration award for legal fees and costs in favor of Weissmann Wolff Bergman Coleman Grodin & Evall LLP (Weissmann firm) against Jasbir Singh, its former client, and remanded the matter with directions to deny the petition to confirm the award, grant Singh’s petition to vacate the award and “conduct further proceedings not inconsistent with this opinion, including, if appropriate, an order requiring binding arbitration before either a new or the original arbitrator.†(Weissmann Wolff Bergman Coleman Grodin & Evall LLP v. Singh (Aug. 23, 2011, B225813) [nonpub. opn.] (Singh I.) On remand Singh moved for an award of attorney fees incurred in the original arbitration and the post-arbitration petition proceedings. The court granted the motion in part, awarding Singh $27,000 in fees in connection with the petition proceedings in the superior court, and denied it in part, including Singh’s request for $70,181.25 in fees incurred in the prior appeal.
In this appeal Singh contends, as the prevailing party in the post-arbitration judicial proceedings, he was entitled to attorney fees incurred in his successful appeal notwithstanding our order that “[e]ach party is to bear his or its own costs on appeal.†The Weissmann firm, on the other hand, argues no award of attorney fees is appropriate at this point in the proceedings because, as we had invited, the superior court on remand ordered a new arbitration of the underlying fee dispute. In addition, the Weissmann firm has moved to dismiss the appeal, arguing the March 1, 2012 order granting in part and denying in part Singh’s motion for attorney fees is not an appealable order.[1] We agree and dismiss the appeal.
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