Great Western Bank v. Converse Consultants, Inc.

A cross-defendant enters into a good faith settlement with the plaintiffs, agreeing to pay the plaintiffs a sum of money which will offset any judgments the plaintiffs obtain against the defendant and cross-complainant. The trial court dismisses the cross-complaints and awards the cross-defendant its costs. The cross-complainant appeals the award of costs, contending it is the prevailing party on the cross-complaints in light of the fact that it obtained a net monetary recovery by virtue of the offset of the cross-defendant’s settlement from the plaintiffs’ judgments against the cross-complainant. We conclude the cross-defendant is the prevailing party on the cross-complaints because a dismissal was entered in the cross-defendant’s favor and the cross-complainants recovered no relief against the cross-defendant. We affirm.

Facts and Procedural Background

This appeal involves four separate lawsuits all arising out of property damage incurred as a result of a landslide in a residential development. Three of the lawsuits were brought by groups of homeowners (Brady, Gable, and Piper) and the fourth was brought by the County of Los Angeles (County). The plaintiffs in the…