In Sviridov v. City of San Diego, ordered published August 15, 2017, the Fourth District Court of Appeal, Division 1 affirmed a decision awarding the defendant city its post-offer costs under Code of Civil Procedure section 998 in a lawsuit the plaintiff police officer brought under the Fair Employment and Housing Act and the Peace Officer's Bill of Rights. The plaintiff argued that case law holds that in a FEHA action fees and costs may be awarded to a defendant only if the action was frivolous. The appellate court ruled that the case law does not apply to section 998, under which a defendant who makes a settlement officer that the plaintiff fails to do better than is awarded the defendant's post-offer costs. The court also rejected the argument that the costs provisions of POBRA create an exception to section 998.
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