California Court of Appeal Affirms ZEL Anti-SLAPP Victory

Founding Partner Rinat B. Klier Erlich and Appellate Partner Robert Wargo secured an appellate result preserving an anti-SLAPP victory and attorney fee award.

Zelms Erlich Lenkov LLP successfully defended an anti-SLAPP victory on appeal in a case involving claims arising from prior litigation activity. In a decision filed October 22, 2026, the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, affirmed the order granting the defendants’ anti-SLAPP motions and the attorney fee award in favor of ZEL’s client, an attorney.

Founding Partner Rinat B. Klier Erlich and Appellate Partner Robert Wargo represented ZEL’s client in securing this appellate result.

The action included allegations of fraud, negligence, abuse of process, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and civil conspiracy. The appeal required consideration of the activity underlying those claims and whether the plaintiff had presented evidence sufficient to allow them to proceed.

The Court of Appeal concluded that the claims arose from protected activity and that the plaintiff failed to present competent evidence establishing even minimal merit. Those findings supported affirmance of the anti-SLAPP ruling.

The appellate result preserved both the favorable anti-SLAPP ruling and the attorney fee award in favor of ZEL’s client. For the defense, the outcome carried the successful motion result through appellate review.

The matter highlights the importance of early motion practice when the facts support a complete defense. ZEL specializes in legal malpractice defense, and its attorneys have prevailed on numerous anti-SLAPP motions.

Congratulations to Rinat and Robert on achieving this successful appellate outcome for their client.

The opinion is unpublished. This article reports the case outcome and does not present the decision as binding precedent.