Ponte

*553 Plaintiff Dennis Ponte is asking defendant County of Calaveras (County) to pay him over $150,000 to reimburse him for work purportedly performed on the County's behalf pursuant to an oral contract. The contract did not contain any fixed payment, and no bid was submitted-far less approved-pursuant to relevant county ordinances governing public contracts. Ponte disregarded opportunities to abandon his claims after the County provided him with pertinent legal authority demonstrating that his claims lacked merit. After multiple sustained demurrers, the trial court granted summary judgment to the County on Ponte's third amended complaint. The court later awarded substantial attorney fees, finding Ponte's claims-including those based on promissory estoppel-were not brought or maintained in both subjective and objective good faith.

Ponte appeals. We shall affirm.

*554 BACKGROUND

The record on appeal begins in the middle of a somewhat complex lawsuit. This appeal deals with but a small segment of that suit. 1 Viewing the facts in Ponte's *501 favor, in 2011 "a land failure" occurred at the intersection of Fricot City Road and Ross Thornton's driveway. Thornton hired a geotechnical…