entitled to a fee award. But the question of who has prevailed is not as
straightforward as the Court of Appeals and the trial court made it seem.
Absent a statute, contract, or recognized grounds in equity to the contrary,
parties in civil actions must bear their own attorney fees. Williams v. Tilaye, 174
Wn.2d 57, 61, 272 P.3d 235 (2012); Cosmo. Eng’g Grp., Inc. v. Ondeo Degremont,
Inc., 159 Wn.2d 292, 296-97, 149 P.3d 666 (2006). Three separate fee-shifting
statutes potentially apply in this case: the small claims statute, the arbitration statute,
and the Residential Landlord-Tenant Act of 1973 (RLTA). The small claims statute
entitles the prevailing party to attorney fees and costs. RCW 4.84.250-.300. Its fee-
shifting provision recognizes a defendant or party resisting relief as a prevailing
party where “either the plaintiff recovers nothing or the defendant makes [a
settlement] offer 10 days or more before trial and the plaintiff recovers as much as
or less than that offer.” Williams, 174 Wn.2d at 62 (citing RCW 4.84.270). This
fee-shifting scheme is designed to “encourage out-of-court settlements and . . .
penalize parties who unjustifiably bring or resist small claims.” Beckmann v.
Spokane Transit Auth., 107 Wn.2d 785, 788, 733 P.2d 960 (1987).
21
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Crossroads Management, LLC v. Ridgway et al., No. 101329-9
The arbitration statute authorizes an award of attorney fees and costs “against
a party who appeals the award and fails to improve his or her position on the trial de
novo.” RCW 7.06.060(1); see also SCCAR 7.3 (“The court shall assess costs and
reasonable attorney fees against a party who appeals the award and fails to improve