Fang v. Showa Entetsu Co.11/20/2003
JUDGMENT AFFIRMED AND CASE REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS
Defendants, Showa Entetsu Co., Ltd., and SPF Corporation of America, appeal from the trial court's judgment awarding attorney fees and costs to plaintiff, Michael S. Fang. We affirm and remand for an award of appellate attorney fees.
This action arose out of plaintiff's termination of employment with defendants. In 1991, plaintiff and the executive vice president of Showa entered into a two-page employment agreement. This agreement was for an indefinite period of time, but provided, "This agreement may be terminated by the employer by giving 30 days advance written notice to the employee. In this case, the employer will compensate the employee equivalent of two years compensations as listed in the appendix."
Plaintiff's compensation consisted of a base salary with annual cost of living and merit raises, year-end bonus, vacation time, medical insurance, life insurance, disability insurance, and matching contributions to his retirement account. He also received a one-time signing bonus of $30,000.
Plaintiff was employed by defendants to "set up and run its branch office in the U.S.A., and to provide support and expertise for the Far East market." However, instead of a branch office, SPF Corporation of America was formed, and plaintiff served as its president until he was fired in 1999. At that time, his base salary was $155,144 per year. Defendants terminated plaintiff's employment without giving him thirty days written notice or paying him severance as provided in the employment agreement.
Plaintiff filed this lawsuit in October 1999. After a bench trial, the trial court entered judgment for plaintiff in the amount of $386,853.99 on the underlying claim, which has been affirmed in a separate appeal. Fang v. Showa Entetsu Co., (Colo. App. No. 02CA0296, Nov. 20, 2003)(not published pursuant to C.A.R. 35(f)). The trial court subsequently awarded attorney fees and costs to plaintiff under the applicable version of the Colorado Wage Claim Act (CWCA). This appeal followed.
I.
Defendants first contend that the trial court erred when it found that plaintiff's damages constituted wages under the CWCA. Under the applicable version of the statute, we do not agree.
We review a trial court's legal conclusions de novo. Turnbaugh v. Chapman, 68 P.3d 570, 572 (Colo. App. 2003).
The purpose of the CWCA is to ensure that wages are paid in a timely manner and to provide adequate judicial relief in the event wages are not paid. The CWCA should be liberally interpreted to serve its purpose. Montemayor v. Jacor Communications, Inc., 64 P.3d 916, 923 (Colo. App. 2002). An employer is liable under the CWCA if the employer does not pay an employee wages he or she earned at the time of discharge. Lee v. Great Empire Broad., Inc., supra, 794 P.2d at 1034.
Pursuant to the version of the CWCA applicable here, wages or compensation were defined as:
all amounts for labor or service performed by employees, whether the amount is fixed or ascertained by the standard of time, task, piece, commission basis, or other method of calculating the same or whether the labor or service is performed under contract, subcontract, partnership, subpartnership, station plan, or other agreement for the performance of labor or service if the labor or service to be paid for is performed personally by the person demanding payment.
Colo. Sess. Laws 1959, ch. 167, § 2(1) at 537-38 (formerly codified at § 8-4-101(9); now codified with amendments at § 8-4-101(8)(a)(I), C.R.S. 2003)(emphasis added).
Under that definition, co
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