Fahrney v. City of Des Moines
Kurt Fahrney and Bela Animal Legal Defense and Rescue, Plaintiffs-Appellees
vs.
Animal Rescue League of Iowa, Defendant-Appellant
and
The City of Des Moines, Iowa and James Butler, Defendants
Attorney for Appellant
Jason M. Casini
Attorney for Appellees
Jaysen McCleary
Court of Appeals
Court of Appeals Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Summary
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Jeanie K. Vaudt, Judge. REVERSED AND REMANDED. Considered by Doyle, P.J., and Tabor and Schumacher, JJ. Opinion by Tabor, J. (9 pages)
The Animal Rescue League (ARL) appeals the district court’s denial of its motion for sanctions against plaintiff Bela Animal Legal Defense and Rescue (Bela) and plaintiff’s counsel. The ARL argues the district court abused its discretion by declining to impose sanctions based on their perceived futility in deterring unprofessional conduct on this record. OPINION HOLDS: Because Iowa Rule of Civil Procedure 1.413(1) commands courts to impose sanctions when they find violations of the rule on frivolous filings, we reverse and remand for further proceedings.