La Mesa City Attorneys to Face ‘Street Fighter of the Year’ Kathryn Karcher

City Hall isn’t breathing easily just yet. Now its lawyers have to face the 2011 Street Fighter of the Year.

Despite losing a breach-of-contract lawsuit potentially worth $10.5 million, Briercrest Development has appealed the November 2011 decision of Judge Joel Wohlfeil in El Cajon Superior Court.

On Jan. 17, the state 4th District Court of Appeal received a 32-page notice of appeal (attached).

Taking on the case for Briercrest is Kathryn Karcher, who has reputedly handled more than 150 appeals and writ proceedings.

Karcher’s San Diego-based law firm Karcher Harmes LLP will pursue the Briercrest appeal in the case of a failed senior-citizen’s condo project that morphed into a assisted-living home and skilled-nursing facility.

The developer says it’s invested more than $4 million in the project while trying to secure private financing.  When it couldn’t get a private loan, it sued the city for not financing the project near Sharp Grossmont Hospital.

According to her website, Karcher received the 2011 Street Fighter of the Year award from the Consumer Attorneys of California for excellence in representing plaintiffs on appeal.

“Karcher has been included in San Diego Super Lawyers for 2007 through 2012, as one of the Super Lawyers Top 25 Women Lawyers in San Diego County for 2008 and 2010 through 2012, and for Washington Super Lawyers for 2012,” her biography says.  
 
“Karcher has also been included in The Best Lawyers in America for 2006 through 2012, and Karcher Harmes LLP was included in U.S. News and World Report's Best Law Firms in Appellate Practice for 2011 through 2012.”

According to the website Avvo, Karcher was part of a legal team working for Bayer Corp. , the defendant in another 4th District court case.

The Court of Appeal in October 2011 affirmed the judgment for the defendants.
“Class action plaintiffs alleged that a branded drug manufacturer and generic drug manufacturers violated antitrust laws by settling patent litigation challenging the branded drug manufacturer's patent on the active ingredient in the antibiotic Cipro,” said a summary of the case that Karcher won.

The Avvo site rates Karcher “superb,” with a 9.2 rating and “No professional misconduct found.”

In the Briercrest case, an appeal could take a year and a half, according to a court spokesman.

“The next item due is the reporters transcript due on [March 20], followed by the clerks transcript and the briefs by attorneys on both sides of the case,” said Kevin Lane, assistant clerk administrator for the San Diego section of the Fourth Appellate District, called Division One. 

“The latest numbers I’ve seen indicate that it takes about 481 days for a civil case to work through the appellate court,” Lane said Friday via email. 

The 2-year-old case was fought by city attorneys Glenn Sabine and Gregory Lusitana, and four days before the appeal was filed the city won a court order for $147,233 in attorney fees.

Briercrest has deposited of $1,625 in making the appeal, which the city of La Mesa was notified about in mid-December.

On Wedensday, Mayor Art Madrid responded to a Patch query about the Briercrest victory in Superior Court, summarized in a story Tuesday.

“Thanks for showcasing the work our city attorneys do,” Madrid said via email. “On your request, I can’t comment because this matter is in the appeal process.”