(a) In addition to any remedies and penalties available in any enforcement action brought in the name of the people of the State of California by the Attorney General, a district attorney, or a city attorney, acting as a public prosecutor, the court shall award relief in the enforcement action for any person who obtained services offered or provided in violation of Section 6125 or 6126 or who purchased any goods, services, or real or personal property in connection with services offered or provided in violation of Section 6125 or 6126 against the person who violated Section 6125 or 6126, or who sold goods, services, or property in connection with that violation. The court shall consider the following relief:
(1) Actual damages.
(2) Restitution of all amounts paid.
(3) The amount of penalties and tax liabilities incurred in connection with the sale or transfer of assets to pay for any goods, services, or property.
(4) Reasonable attorney’s fees and costs expended to rectify errors made in the unlawful practice of law.
(5) Prejudgment interest at the legal rate from the date of loss to the date of judgment.
(6) Appropriate equitable relief, including the rescission of sales made in connection with a violation of law.
(b) The relief awarded under paragraphs (1) to (6), inclusive, of subdivision (a) shall be distributed to, or on behalf of, the person for whom it was awarded or, if it is impracticable to do so, shall be distributed as may be directed by the court pursuant to its equitable powers.
(c) The court shall also award the Attorney General, district attorney, or city attorney reasonable attorney’s fees and costs and, in the court’s discretion, exemplary damages as provided in Section 3294 of the Civil Code.
(d) This section shall not be construed to create, abrogate, or otherwise affect claims, rights, or remedies, if any, that may be held by a person or entity other than those law enforcement agencies described in subdivision (a). The remedies provided in this section are cumulative to each other and to the remedies and penalties provided under other laws.
(Added by Stats. 2001, Ch. 304, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 2002.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018