Shell

*959 Opinion

A jury awarded plaintiff $450,000 as compensation for successfully negotiating modifications to an oil drilling lease on behalf of defendant. Defendant claims plaintiff’s recovery is barred by the statute of frauds and his breach of a fiduciary duty; alternatively, defendant claims it is entitled to a new trial on the issue of compensation. We reject defendant’s claims and affirm the judgment.

Facts and Proceedings Below

Plaintiff Joseph Shell is a well-known figure in the California oil business and politics. He began his work in the oil industry in 1946 and continued in that field except for the period 1953-1963 when he served in the state Legislature. After leaving the Legislature, the combination of oil and politics led naturally to a career as a lobbyist for oil interests in the state capítol. It was as a lobbyist for oil interests Shell first had business dealings with defendant Westates Petroleum Company.

Westates became a client of Shell’s in 1971 and he represented the company through 1976. In addition to lobbying for Westates, on two occasions Shell negotiated with the Standard Oil Company on Westates’ behalf to obtain extensions of a drilling lease…