§ 6.1.9 ATTORNEYS' FEES.

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

§ 6.1.9 Attorneys' Fees. Because wrongful discharge claims premised on the public policy exception sound in tort,⁴⁰² the prevailing party ordinarily is not entitled to recover attorneys' fees,⁴⁰³ and this rule was not altered by the legislature's codification of such claims in the EPA.⁴⁰⁴ In an unreported decision, Vera v. Sun Land Beef Co.,⁴⁰⁵ the Arizona Court of Appeals held that the party prevailing on a wrongful discharge claim under the EPA was not entitled to an award of attorneys' fees under A.R.S. § 12-341.01 because the latter statute's provision for a discretionary award of attorneys' fees to the successful party in a contested contract action⁴⁰⁶ "does not apply to such a statutory claim."⁴⁰⁷

However, in Harris v. Maricopa County Superior Court,⁴⁰⁸ the Ninth Circuit held that because a wrongful termination claim premised solely on a federal statute or on an Arizona statute that provides its own remedy is "patently inadequate" under the EPA, an employer successfully defending against such a claim may be entitled to recover its attorneys fees on the ground that the claim was frivolous.⁴⁰⁹ Other attorneys' fees issues are discussed in Article 10.8.6.1.

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Notes:

^[402] Wagner, 150 Ariz. at 88, 722 P.2d at 256; Woerth, 167 Ariz. at 418, 808 P.2d at 303; see also Spratt, 958 F. Supp. at 462:

The tort of wrongful discharge protects both at-will and non-at-will employees. . . . It is not grounded in contract, but rather...