Copenbarger

*3 INTRODUCTION

Lloyd Copenbarger, as Trustee of the Hazel I. Maag Trust (the Maag Trust), sued Morris Cerullo World Evangelism, Inc. (MCWE) for declaratory relief and breach of a settlement agreement made to resolve various disputes, including an unlawful detainer action. 1 The Maag Trust *841 alleged MCWE breached the settlement agreement by failing to dismiss with prejudice the *4 unlawful detainer action and sought, as damages, attorney fees incurred in that action from the date of the settlement agreement to the date on which MCWE did dismiss the action.

Following a bench trial, the trial court found MCWE had breached the settlement agreement by not timely dismissing with prejudice the unlawful detainer action. As damages, the court awarded the Maag Trust $118,000-representing the attorney fees it claimed to have incurred during the relevant time period.

On appeal, MCWE does not challenge the finding that its failure to dismiss the unlawful detainer action constituted a breach of the settlement agreement. Instead, MCWE makes a number of arguments challenging the damages awarded. Most significantly, MCWE argues (1) the Maag Trust could not as a matter of law recover its…