Tremper

Believing in good faith that he was working on his own property, Victor Quinones planted a crop of cacti on land belonging to his neighbors, Michael and Janis Tremper. The Trempers sued to quiet title against this wrongful use of their property, a claim for which the landowner generally is not entitled to recover attorney fees and costs. In response to the complaint, however, Quinones filed a cross-complaint seeking relief as a good faith improver. To obtain such relief, the good faith improver must pay any costs and attorney fees incurred by the landowner. (Code Civ. Proc., § 871.3; Civ. Code, § 1013.5.) The trial court found that Quinones was a good faith improver and granted him the right to remove his crops and other improvements from the Trempers’ property, save one, and also granted the Trempers their requested relief. The court refused, however, to award the Trempers any costs and fees after counsel indicated that it was impossible to apportion costs and fees incurred in prosecuting the complaint, for which costs and fees are not allowed, and in defending against the cross-complaint, which mandates such recovery.

The law recognizes that one may innocently and in…