Supreme Court of California

An award of private attorney general fees to plaintiff following his successfully litigation to invalidate several state statutes outlawing governmental preferential treatment by race, sex, and other categories is reversed where advocacy groups designated real parties in interest were not "opposing parties" under applicable law.

Appellate Information

• Decided 03/02/2006
• Published 03/02/2006

Judges

• MORENO, J.

Court

• Supreme Court of California

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Pacific Legal Foundation, Sacramento, Anthony T. Caso, Bellevue, WA, Deborah J. La Fetra and Timothy Sandefur, Sacramento, for Plaintiff and Appellant., Munger, Tolles & Olson, Jeffrey L. Bleich, San Francisco, Anne M. Voigts and John C. Day, Los Angeles, for Real Parties in Interest and Appellants., Hugh F. Young, Jr., and Harvey M. Grossman, Los Angeles, for The Product Liability Advisory Council, Inc., as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Real Parties in Interest and Appellants.


• For Appellees:
  
• Ralph D. Black, Sacramento, for Defendants and Respondents Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges and Thomas J. Nussbaum, Chancellor of the California Community Colleges., Bill Lockyer, Attorney General, Louis R. Mauro, Assistant Attorney General, Catherine Van Aken and Leslie R. Lopez, Deputy Attorney Generals, for Defendants and Respondents Phil Angelides, Treasurer of the State of California, Joan Wilson, Director of the California State Lottery and the California State Lottery Commission., No appearance for Defendants and Respondents State Personnel Board and Steve Westly, State Controller.