County of San Diego v. Lamb

In County of San Diego v. Lamb (1998) 63 Cal.App.4th 845, the county sought reimbursement from a mother for welfare benefits paid to her 15-year-old daughter who had given birth to a child of her own. The Court of Appeal for the Fourth Appellate District, Division One, held the mother was not the noncustodial parent within the meaning of Welfare and Institutions Code section 11350; the needy child was her granddaughter, not her daughter. ( Id. at p. 850.) Moreover, the Court of Appeal held the mother was entitled to a section 1021.5 award of attorneys' fees both at the trial and the appellate level. The court stated: "We conclude that the mother's successful resistance to County's attempt to recoup AFDC benefits from her under Welfare and Institutions Code section 11350 'has resulted in the enforcement of an important right affecting the public interest and that a significant benefit . . . has been conferred on . . . a large class of persons . . . .' Here, the benefit conferred is the proper interpretation of section 11350. Based on our decision, parents like the mother whose children abandon the family home to raise children of their own will not be forced to bear the financial burden that appropriately lies with the absent parent of the needy child." ( Id. at p. 853.)