In an action for damages against a defendant based upon that defendant's commission of a felony offense for which that defendant has been convicted, the court may, upon motion, award reasonable attorney's fees to a prevailing plaintiff against the defendant who has been convicted of the felony.
§ 1021.4.Attorney's Fees Against Defendant Convicted of Felony For Which Action Based
Title 14. Of Miscellaneous Provisions · Chapter 6. Of Costs · Enacted 1983 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1021.4 lets a court award reasonable attorney's fees, on motion, to a plaintiff who prevails in a civil damages action against a defendant who has already been criminally convicted of the felony that the lawsuit is based on.
Full Text of § 1021.4
Plain-English Summary
This section rewards plaintiffs who sue over conduct serious enough to produce a felony conviction. If a defendant has been convicted of a felony, and a plaintiff then sues that same defendant for damages arising from the conduct behind the conviction, the plaintiff can ask the court, by motion, to add reasonable attorney's fees to whatever else the plaintiff recovers.
The fee award is discretionary, not automatic -- the statute says the court "may" award fees, leaving the amount and the decision itself to the judge handling the motion. The conviction has to exist and has to be the basis for the civil action; this section doesn't reach civil suits over conduct that was never prosecuted as a felony or that ended in an acquittal.
Section 1021.4 is one of several fee-shifting statutes in this chapter that answer § 1021's opening exception, each aimed at a different category of misconduct the Legislature wanted to make more expensive to defend once already proven criminally.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can recover attorney's fees under Section 1021.4?
A prevailing plaintiff in a civil damages action, where the defendant has been convicted of the felony offense the lawsuit is based on.
Is the fee award automatic once there's a felony conviction?
No. The court has discretion to award reasonable attorney's fees on the plaintiff's motion; the statute doesn't make an award mandatory.
Does the felony conviction have to relate to the same conduct as the lawsuit?
Yes. Section 1021.4 requires that the damages action be based upon the defendant's commission of the felony offense for which that defendant was convicted.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1983, Ch. 938, Sec. 3. Effective September 20, 1983.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: ccp 1021.4 attorney fees felony convictionattorney fees civil suit criminal defendant californiafee award felony victim lawsuit california