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Sanctions aren't a punishment. They're a pricing system. Here's how to read the price tag.
Three statutes set three different prices. CCP §177.5 caps general sanctions at $1,500 per violation. §2023.030 governs discovery sanctions — no cap, awarded against the losing party absent substantial justification. §128.7 punishes frivolous filings, with a 21-day safe harbor.
Pull up a composite sanctions order on screen. Names, case numbers, and figures redacted. Then read the cited statute first.
Defense thinks the violation is procedural. Ceiling fifteen hundred. Often a warning shot, not a kill shot.
They think you've made discovery expensive — and they want fees and costs uncapped. The price tag is the lawyer's hourly times their indignation.
They're claiming your pleading itself is frivolous. They had to serve it twenty-one days before filing. Check the safe-harbor letter — that's the leverage.
The statute they pick is a confession of how they're valuing your case in pain.
When defense moves for sanctions, they're telling you what they think your case is worth in pain.
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