Harrington

BACKGROUND

In August 2016, Harrington filed a complaint against the County based on her allegations that the County’s parking lot caused excessive amounts of water to flow onto her property and damage her residence during times of heavy rains. The complaint further alleged that Harrington had complied with the Government Claims Act (Gov. Code, § 810 et seq.) by receiving a “ ‘right to sue letter’ ” from the County before filing her action in superior court. Specifically, the complaint alleged that the County acknowledged receiving Harrington’s tort claim on April 18, 2016. The County filed an answer in which it denied receiving a tort claim from Harrington as required by Government Code section 905. Also in the answer, the County requested fees and costs under section 1038. The County reiterated its intention to seek attorney fees and costs under section 1038 in a meet-and-confer letter that it sent to Harrington’s attorney, Timothy Hamilton. Harrington has omitted this letter, and numerous other attachments, from the appellate record. A description of the letter indicates that Andrew Caulfield, counsel for the County, informed Harrington that there was no evidence of proof of…