In Ellis Law Group LLP v. Nevada City Sugar Loaf Properties LLC, 2014 DJDAR 13541, the California Court of Appeal for the Third Appellate District decided a case implicating the doctrine that self‑represented law firms may not be awarded attorney fees for work conducted to pursue an anti‑SLAPP motion.

The Ellis Law Group LLP (Ellis) sued Nevada City Sugar Loaf Properties LLC (Nevada) to collect unpaid legal fees and costs. Sugar Loaf filed a cross‑complaint, which listed three attorneys in the caption, including Joseph Major, as counsel of record for Ellis. Major’s name was also included as an Ellis attorney in the caption of numerous other documents relating to the anti‑SLAPP motion. The trial court subsequently granted the anti‑SLAPP motion.

Ellis then filed a motion for attorney fees as the prevailing party. In support of the fee motion, Major contended that attorney fees should be awarded because he was an “independent contractor” for the Ellis law firm and was not an attorney employed by the firm. The trial court granted the fee motion and awarded Ellis $14,553.50 in attorney fees.

The court of appeal reversed the fee award rendered by the trial court. The court noted that while normally a prevailing defendant on a special motion to strike should be awarded attorney fees, a successful “self‑represented attorney” on such a motion is not entitled to a fee award. The court held that “of counsel” should be considered a member of the law firm, if the relationship between the two is “close, personal and regular.” The court noted that the analysis for “of counsel” attorneys applies to attorneys who are “independent contractors.”  The court reasoned that during his work on the anti‑SLAPP motion, Major was a member of the law firm because he was included on the caption of numerous anti‑SLAPP pleadings.