Fee petition mechanics · Updated July 2026
California Floating Home Residency Law attorney fee petition mechanics: marina management system berth lease commencement date as primary Welch anchor, Civ. Code § 800.80 mandatory attorney fees
California Floating Home Residency Law enforcement (Civ. Code §§ 800–800.100, FHRL, enacted 1987, which governs owners of floating homes — vessels designed and built to be used as stationary waterborne residential dwellings, not primarily for navigation (§ 800.4) — who lease berths at marinas as their primary residence; floating home residents are entitled to a 6-month written eviction notice under § 800.70 (far longer than the 60-day notice for MRL mobilehome residents or RVPOA permanent occupants, reflecting the extreme difficulty of relocating a non-self-propelled floating home), written berth lease agreements under § 800.22, written marina rules under § 800.24, protection from unauthorized fee increases under § 800.50, retaliatory eviction protection under § 800.71, and the right to sell the floating home in place under § 800.78 — with attorney fees under § 800.80 mandatory to the prevailing party in any action arising out of the FHRL; floating homes are found primarily in the San Francisco Bay Area (Sausalito's Gate 5 Road community of approximately 400 floating homes, Richardson Bay Marina, Clipper Yacht Harbor, Schoonmaker Marina, Berkeley Marina), the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Stockton Marina, Rio Vista Marina, Antioch Marina), Long Beach inner harbor, and San Diego Bay marinas; the FHRL is entirely distinct from the Mobilehome Residency Law (Civ. Code § 798 et seq.) which covers mobilehomes on permanent ground foundations in mobilehome parks, and entirely distinct from the Recreational Vehicle Park Occupancy Act (Civ. Code § 799.79) which covers RVs in land-based parks) solos billing hourly on mandatory attorney fees to prevailing party — in actions where the primary Welch temporal anchor is the MARINA MANAGEMENT SYSTEM BERTH LEASE COMMENCEMENT DATE (the date the marina's institutional slip and berth management platform first recorded the floating home resident's berth lease commencement, liveaboard designation, and dock assignment — a date on the marina's institutional management system entirely outside the floating home resident attorney's scheduling control; the Marina Management System Berth Lease Commencement Date is the ONLY primary anchor in the fee-petition-mechanics series IN A MARINA'S INSTITUTIONAL SLIP AND BERTH MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR FLOATING HOME RESIDENTS — Dockmaster Pro records berth lease creation date, liveaboard permit issuance date, and monthly billing cycle start date on Dockmaster's institutional marina management platform entirely outside attorney control; Harbour Assist records berth contract date, vessel registration date, and dock assignment on Harbour Assist's institutional marina management system; Haas Software MarinaOffice records slip lease agreement date, liveaboard designation, and billing commencement date on Haas Software's institutional platform; Dockmasters Marina Management records berth rental start date, dock assignment, and liveaboard status on its institutional management system — ALL marina management software platforms record berth lease commencement dates, liveaboard designations, and dock assignment dates on the marina's institutional management system entirely outside the floating home resident attorney's scheduling control; THREE UNIQUE DISTINCTIONS: (1) THE ONLY page where PRIMARY CLAIM IS FLOATING HOME RESIDENT RIGHTS VIOLATION under California Floating Home Residency Law (Civ. Code § 800 et seq.) — covering a vessel that is designed and built to be used as a stationary waterborne residential dwelling (not a motorboat, sailboat, or vessel used primarily for navigation); distinct from Mobilehome Residency Law (Civ. Code § 798 et seq.) which covers factory-built structures on permanent ground foundations in mobilehome parks — a floating home floats on water and is moored in a marina berth; distinct from RVPOA (Civ. Code § 799.79) which covers recreational vehicles in land-based parks — floating homes are waterborne; distinct from AB 1482 Tenant Protection Act (Civ. Code § 1946.2) which expressly exempts floating homes under § 1946.2(e)(8); (2) THE ONLY page where PRIMARY DEFENDANT IS A MARINA OWNER, HARBOR DISTRICT, OR MARINA MANAGEMENT COMPANY that violated FHRL rights — marina operators at Gate 5 Road Sausalito, Richardson Bay Marina, Berkeley Marina, Clipper Yacht Harbor, Stockton Marina, Rio Vista Marina, Long Beach Marina, public harbor districts (Port of San Francisco, Port of Oakland, Port of Los Angeles) who issued insufficient eviction notices, charged unauthorized fees, failed to provide written berth lease agreements, or retaliated against floating home residents for exercising FHRL rights; (3) THE ONLY page where PRIMARY WELCH ANCHOR IS IN THE MARINA'S SLIP AND BERTH MANAGEMENT SYSTEM BERTH LEASE COMMENCEMENT DATE — Dockmaster Pro/Harbour Assist/Haas Software MarinaOffice/Dockmasters records berth lease commencement date, liveaboard permit date, and dock assignment date on marina's institutional management system entirely outside floating home resident attorney's scheduling control; PURE KETCHUM for California FHRL — no federal floating home residency statute; concurrent Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. § 3604) if floating home resident in protected class = Dague-constrained; Hensley segregation required; DISTINCT from california-mobilehome-residency-law-civ-code-798-86 [§ 798.86 MRL covers mobilehomes on ground foundations; FHRL § 800.80 covers vessels in marina berths]; DISTINCT from california-rv-park-occupancy-act-civ-code-799-79 [RVPOA covers RVs in land-based parks; FHRL covers floating homes in water berths]; DISTINCT from california-tenant-protection-act-ab-1482-civ-code-1946-2 [AB 1482 expressly exempts floating homes under § 1946.2(e)(8)]) — generate three billing gaps driven by FHRL floating home definition and berth lease rights analysis and 6-month eviction notice validity advisory calls, marina berth management system records and Coast Guard documentation and liveaboard permit advisory calls, and § 800.80 mandatory attorney fee petition advisory calls: FHRL floating home definition and berth lease rights scope and 6-month notice validity analysis advisory calls (7 clients × 2 calls × 42 min × 55% untracked ≈ 5.39 hrs = $1,617–$2,695/year at $300–$500/hr), marina berth management system records subpoena and Coast Guard NVDC documentation and liveaboard permit records advisory calls (6 clients × 3 calls × 44 min × 55% ≈ 7.26 hrs = $2,178–$3,630/year), and § 800.80 prevailing party attorney fee petition and Ketchum multiplier advisory calls (5 clients × 2 calls × 44 min × 55% ≈ 4.03 hrs = $1,210–$2,017/year). For a solo California floating home residency practice, the annual billing gap from advisory call underlogging is $5,005–$8,342.
TL;DR
ClaimHour captures every FHRL floating home definition and berth lease rights scope and 6-month eviction notice validity analysis advisory call that starts the § 800.80 fee documentation period, every marina berth management system records subpoena and Coast Guard NVDC documentation and liveaboard permit advisory call on institutional marina calendars outside the floating home resident attorney's scheduling control, and every § 800.80 prevailing party attorney fee petition and Ketchum multiplier advisory call — passively, no timer, no audio, no call contents. $29–$59/mo. No PMS required.
FHRL floating home definition and berth lease rights scope: calls on the marina management system calendar
The MARINA MANAGEMENT SYSTEM BERTH LEASE COMMENCEMENT DATE is the primary Welch temporal anchor for Civ. Code § 800.80 attorney fee billing documentation in floating home residency cases. This date is the ONLY primary anchor in the fee-petition-mechanics series IN A MARINA'S INSTITUTIONAL SLIP AND BERTH MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR FLOATING HOME RESIDENTS. It is the Hensley lodestar start for three reasons: (1) the berth lease commencement date is when the marina's institutional slip management system first recorded the resident's berth assignment and liveaboard designation — the FHRL protections arise from the floating home resident status and berth lease, but the marina's management system date establishes the residency timeline with precision; (2) all advisory calls on FHRL applicability, floating home qualification, and eviction notice validity begin when the floating home resident retains civil counsel; (3) the marina's slip and berth management platform's commencement date is on the marina's institutional calendar entirely outside the floating home resident attorney's scheduling control.
Three initial advisory call types generate untracked billing from the berth lease commencement date: (1) FHRL floating home definition and resident qualification analysis advisory — arrives when floating home resident retains attorney (§ 800.4 defines 'floating home' as 'a vessel designed and built to be used, or used, as a stationary waterborne residential dwelling'; critical: the vessel must be used as a dwelling, not primarily for navigation; if the vessel is used both for navigation and as a residence, it may not qualify as a floating home — courts distinguish between a 'floating home' (stationary dwelling) and a 'houseboat' (navigable vessel used as residence); § 800.6 defines 'marina' as a place where five or more berths are offered for rent or lease; § 800.8 defines 'floating home owner' as the owner of a floating home who leases a berth; classification analysis: (a) does the vessel have a current USCG documentation certificate or DMV vessel registration? (b) is the vessel designed to be moved, or is it permanently moored and non-propelled? (c) is the marina berth leased as the resident's primary residence? (d) has the marina assigned a liveaboard permit or designation? (e) does the berth lease predate the FHRL's 1987 enactment (pre-1987 berth leases may have grandfather protections); 42–48 min per advisory call); (2) FHRL berth lease rights and marina obligations analysis advisory — arrives at case intake (§ 800.22: marina shall provide written berth rental agreement; § 800.24: marina shall provide written notice of all charges and fees at least 30 days before implementing any increase; § 800.50: marina may not charge a fee unless it is specified in the written berth lease or a properly noticed fee schedule; § 800.70: 6-month written eviction notice for resident who has established domicile at the marina — the 6-month notice period is the longest residential eviction notice in California law; grounds for termination: nonpayment of rent (after 3-day pay-or-quit notice), violation of marina rules (after 3-day notice to cure), or closure/conversion of marina; § 800.78: floating home resident has right to sell the floating home in place without marina owner interference; § 800.80 attorney fee right: prevailing party in any FHRL action; 42–48 min per advisory call); (3) FHRL eviction notice validity and service analysis advisory — arrives when eviction notice issued (§ 800.70 valid termination notice elements: (a) in writing; (b) states the reason for termination with specific facts; (c) gives 6 months' notice from date of service; (d) served by personal service or CCP § 1162 substituted service or posting and mailing; defective notice grounds: insufficient notice period (2-month or 3-month notice instead of required 6 months for permanent floating home resident); vague termination reason; improper service; notice to vacate while marina conversion pending without compliance with § 800.70's conversion requirements; retaliatory notice under § 800.71 — marina retaliated against resident for complaining to harbor authority or Coast Guard about marina conditions; 42–48 min per advisory call). At 55% untracked: 7 clients × 2 calls × 42 min × 55% = 323.4 min / 60 = 5.39 hours = $1,617–$2,695/year at $300–$500/hr.
Marina berth management system records and Coast Guard documentation: calls on institutional calendars outside floating home resident attorney's control
After establishing FHRL applicability and floating home resident classification, the solo attorney must obtain the marina's berth management system records documenting the berth lease commencement, liveaboard designation, and eviction notice, as well as Coast Guard documentation records establishing vessel identity. Each phase creates institutional calendar events entirely outside the attorney's control. Ketchum v. Moses 24 Cal.4th 1122 (2001). PLCM Group Inc. v. Drexler 22 Cal.4th 1084 (2000). Hensley v. Eckerhart 461 U.S. 424 (1983) lodestar from berth lease commencement date. Missouri v. Jenkins 491 U.S. 274 (1989) fees-on-fees.
Three institutional calendar advisory call types generate untracked billing during FHRL case development: (1) Marina berth management system records subpoena advisory — arrives at discovery (Dockmaster Pro business records: Dockmaster's institutional marina management platform records the berth lease commencement date, liveaboard permit date, dock assignment, rent payment history, fee increase notices, and any rule violation notices on Dockmaster's institutional database; subpoena to marina operator or Dockmaster Pro (Atlanta, GA); Harbour Assist records: Harbour Assist's institutional marina software records the berth contract date, vessel details, and billing history on Harbour Assist's institutional UK-based platform (used by California marinas); Haas Software MarinaOffice records: Haas Software's institutional marina management system records the slip lease agreement date, liveaboard designation, and billing commencement; direct marina records: many California floating home marinas maintain proprietary records in addition to commercial software — berth assignment logs, liveaboard permit applications, Coast Guard compliance records — all subpoenaable through CCP § 1985.2 business records subpoena with response dates on the marina's institutional records calendar entirely outside attorney control; harbor district records: public harbor districts (Port of San Francisco, Port of Oakland, Port of Los Angeles, Port of Long Beach) maintain berth assignment records, liveaboard permits, and eviction notice records on the harbor district's institutional administrative calendar entirely outside attorney control; 44–50 min per advisory call); (2) US Coast Guard NVDC vessel documentation and liveaboard permit advisory — arrives at vessel identity research (NVDC documentation: the US Coast Guard National Vessel Documentation Center (NVDC) in Falling Waters, WV records vessel documentation certificates (USCG Form CG-1270) with the vessel's official number, hailing port, and owner information on the NVDC's institutional database; NVDC records request (FOIA or 46 CFR § 67.125 request) takes 2–4 weeks — on NVDC's institutional processing calendar entirely outside attorney control; California DMV vessel registration: if the floating home is registered (not documented) with California DMV, the DMV records the vessel identification number, registration date, and owner address on the DMV's institutional database; DMV record request (INF-70) processing time is on the DMV's institutional calendar; harbor master records: each marina's harbor master maintains a berth map showing which slips are assigned to liveaboards, when liveaboard permits were issued, and when any permit was revoked — harbor master records are on the marina's institutional administrative calendar; BCDC (Bay Conservation and Development Commission) records: for San Francisco Bay marinas, BCDC regulates the Bay and issues permits for marina structures — BCDC permit records are on BCDC's institutional calendar outside attorney control; 44–50 min per advisory call); (3) Unlawful detainer defense and § 800.71 retaliatory eviction evidence advisory — arrives at litigation (when the marina files an unlawful detainer (UD) proceeding to evict the floating home resident, the UD is filed in Superior Court limited or unlimited civil division depending on damages; FHRL defense to UD: § 800.70's 6-month notice requirement is an affirmative defense to any UD where the marina gave less than 6 months' notice to a FHRL resident; § 800.71 retaliatory eviction: marina shall not terminate berth lease in retaliation for resident's exercise of FHRL rights, complaint to harbor authority, or contact with attorney regarding FHRL rights; rebuttable presumption of retaliation if notice issued within 180 days of protected activity; Fair Housing Act concurrent claim (42 U.S.C. § 3604): if floating home resident is in a protected class (race, sex, national origin, disability, familial status, religion) and the eviction was pretextual, FHA concurrent claim may be viable — FHA hours are Dague-constrained; § 800.80 FHRL attorney fee right: prevailing floating home resident in UD proceeding recovers FHRL attorney fees; 44–50 min per advisory call). At 55% untracked: 6 clients × 3 calls × 44 min × 55% = 435.6 min / 60 = 7.26 hours = $2,178–$3,630/year at $300–$500/hr.
§ 800.80 prevailing party attorney fee petition and Ketchum multiplier: calls on the post-judgment calendar
Civ. Code § 800.80 provides mandatory attorney fees to the prevailing party in any action arising out of the FHRL: "In any action arising out of this chapter, the prevailing party shall be entitled to reasonable attorney's fees." The § 800.80 fee petition requires a Hensley lodestar from the berth lease commencement date (when the marina's institutional slip management system first recorded the resident's berth assignment) through all phases. The Ketchum multiplier is available in FHRL cases because: (a) the marina's institutional berth management system records required coordinating with the marina's institutional slip calendar and Coast Guard NVDC; (b) the FHRL floating home definition required specialized knowledge of the distinction between navigable vessels and stationary waterborne residential dwellings; (c) the 6-month notice requirement required specialized knowledge of California's longest residential eviction notice period and its application to floating home residents; (d) PURE KETCHUM for California FHRL — no federal analog.
Two post-judgment advisory call types generate untracked billing: (1) Injunctive relief and marina compliance remedy advisory — arrives at judgment (remedies for FHRL violations include: injunctive relief enjoining the marina from proceeding with a defective eviction; reinstatement of berth lease and liveaboard status; actual damages for costs of emergency relocation, towing the floating home, crane/lift costs, and temporary slip rental during wrongful eviction; § 800.80 mandatory attorney fees and costs; for senior or disabled floating home residents: § 3345 treble damages may apply if the marina's FHRL violation was a deceptive or unfair business practice; § 800.78 right-of-first-refusal if marina converted — marina sale or conversion notice on marina's institutional calendar; Sausalito Gate 5 Road floating home community: Marin County Superior Court has handled multiple FHRL cases — Marin County Court case management calendar dates entirely outside attorney control; 44–50 min per advisory call); (2) § 800.80 prevailing party attorney fee petition and Ketchum multiplier advisory — arrives at fee petition filing (Hensley lodestar components: [a] FHRL floating home definition and resident qualification hours; [b] berth lease rights and marina obligations analysis hours; [c] eviction notice validity analysis hours; [d] marina berth management system records subpoena hours; [e] USCG NVDC documentation research hours; [f] UD defense and retaliatory eviction evidence hours; [g] trial; [h] fee petition preparation hours; Ketchum five-factor multiplier: [a] marina's institutional berth management system and Coast Guard NVDC calendars outside attorney control; [b] FHRL floating home definition required specialized knowledge distinguishing stationary waterborne dwellings from navigable vessels; [c] 6-month eviction notice requirement required specialized knowledge of California's longest residential notice period; [d] BCDC and harbor district permit records required specialized knowledge of Bay Area marina regulatory framework; [e] PURE KETCHUM — California FHRL no federal analog; Missouri v. Jenkins 491 U.S. 274 (1989) fees-on-fees; 44–50 min per advisory call). At 55% untracked: 5 clients × 2 calls × 44 min × 55% = 242 min / 60 = 4.03 hours = $1,210–$2,017/year at $300–$500/hr.
How ClaimHour fits California floating home residency practice
California floating home residency solos billing hourly on Civ. Code § 800.80 mandatory attorney fees in FHRL enforcement actions — with FHRL floating home definition and berth lease rights scope and 6-month eviction notice validity analysis advisory calls arriving when floating home residents at Bay Area, Delta, Long Beach, and San Diego marinas who received insufficient eviction notices, were charged unauthorized marina fees, or were retaliated against for complaining to harbor authorities retain FHRL civil counsel (Marina Management System Berth Lease Commencement Date = primary Welch anchor; the ONLY primary anchor in the fee-petition-mechanics series IN A MARINA'S INSTITUTIONAL SLIP AND BERTH MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR FLOATING HOME RESIDENTS; DISTINCT from california-mobilehome-residency-law-civ-code-798-86 [§ 798.86 MRL covers mobilehomes on permanent ground foundations; FHRL § 800.80 covers floating homes in water berths]; DISTINCT from california-rv-park-occupancy-act-civ-code-799-79 [RVPOA covers RVs in land-based parks; FHRL covers floating homes in water]; § 800.80 mandatory attorney fees prevailing party; § 800.70 6-month eviction notice — longest residential notice in California; § 800.71 retaliatory eviction protection; PURE KETCHUM no federal analog), marina berth management system records subpoena and Coast Guard NVDC vessel documentation and harbor district liveaboard permit advisory calls on institutional marina and federal agency calendars outside floating home resident attorney's scheduling control, and § 800.80 prevailing party attorney fee petition and Ketchum multiplier advisory calls arriving at judgment — and if your § 800.80 prevailing party fee lodestar documentation must satisfy the Hensley contemporaneous-record standard from the berth lease commencement date through all phases of FHRL classification analysis, marina management system records procurement, Coast Guard NVDC vessel documentation, and the § 800.80 mandatory attorney fee petition, ClaimHour was built for that gap.