Excerpt: ... of Danie l D. Geoulla (Geoulla Decl.) ¶¶ 3-4; id., exh. C.) Petitioner seeks relief from the requirement of presenting a claim for personal injury within six months of accrual of his cause of action before bringing an action against Burlingame. There is no dispute that he did not present a claim to Burlingame within six months, but Rhodes contends his failure was due to his mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect. A. Legal Standa...

Excerpt: ...ontinued t he hearing to the instant hearing date: [T]o permit plaintiff to depose declarant Alberto Germano for the limited purpose of inquiring into the two screenshots at Paragraph 5 at of his two otherwise identical declarations filed on December 28, 2023 and Feb ruary 13, 2024, respectively, and explanation regarding a printing error. (See Reply, filed February 13, 2024, at p. 3:25 -28, fn. 2; Defendant's Response, filed February 21, 2024...

Excerpt: ... any terms as may be proper.” (Code Civ. Proc., § 473, subd. (a)(1).) There is a policy of “great liberality” in allowing amendments to pleadings at any stage of the proceeding so as to dispose of cases upon their merits where the authorization does not prejudice the substantial rights of others. (Board of Trustees v. Superior Court (2007) 149 Cal.App.4th 1154, 1163.) When considering whether to permit amendments to pleadings, court should...

Excerpt: ... on uncertain ty is OVERRULED. Legal Standard on Demurrer A party may demur to a pleading on any one or more of the grounds laid out in Code of Civil Procedure, section 430.10, including that the pleading does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action. (Code Civ. Proc., § 430.10.) A court must “treat the demurrer as admitting all material facts properly pleaded, but not contentions, deductions or conclusions of fact or law [an...

Excerpt: ...ase no. 24UD U00101, for all purposes. The former involves claims and cross -claims for breaches of contract and various torts arising out of an alleged oral agreement to sell a business and lease the premises to Vargas. The latter involves a claim for unlawful detainer arising out of an alleged termination of the lease of the premises. As a preliminary matter, there are multiple procedural defects in the moving papers. The notice of motion does ...

Excerpt: ...ek before th e conference proposing dates before the end of 2024 for a court trial on defendants' issue preclusion defense and including a trial estimate for the trial on this affirmative defense. Defendants litigated this case extensively in federal court with CVS Pha rmacy, Inc., who defendants claim is the parent of plaintiff Aetna, Inc. The court denied defendants' issue preclusion motion for judgment on the pleadings and defendants now seek ...

Excerpt: ...scaffolding t hat had been erected as part of the construction. Defendants' operative First Amended Cross -Complaint (“FACC”) alleges causes of action against certain subcontractors, including defendant/crossdefendant James P. Silva Construction, Inc. (Silva) for express indemnity, implied indemnity, equitable indemnity, apportionment/contribution, duty to defend, and declaratory relief. Cross -defendant Silva for moves for summary judgment o...

Excerpt: ...dence are rule d upon as follows: • Obj. No. 1. SUSTAINED. (Evid. Code, §. 702 [lacks personal knowledge]; id., § 403 [lacks foundation].) • Obj. No. 2. SUSTAINED to the extent Plaintiff purports to testify as to whether DOE 4 was employed by the church, or held any off icial position as a pastor. (Evid. Code, § 702 [lacks personal knowledge]; id., § 403 (lacks foundation). Otherwise OVERRULED. • Obj. No. 3. OVERRULED as to Plaintiff's ...

Excerpt: ...he damages to th e principal amount sought for the 2018 and 2019 policy periods and second, to add treble damages to the prayer for relief pursuant to Insurance Code section 11760.1 subdivision (a) for defendants alleged failure to complete a physical audit for the 2020 po licy. The motion is unopposed. Initially, the court notes that plaintiff has yet again provided the improper address for the hearing. Department 4 is not located in Redwood Cit...

Excerpt: ...Laws and Disgorg ement Per Business and Professions Code section 7031(b). “Except as provided in subdivision (e), a person who utilizes the services of an unlicensed contractor may bring an action in any court of competent jurisdiction in this state to recover all compensation paid to the unlicensed contractor for performance of any act or contract.” (Bus. & Prof. Code § 7031(b).) “Section 7031 is directed at precluding unlicensed contract...

Excerpt: ...y appear t o have been served by regular mail, in violation of Code Civ. Proc. Sect. 1005(c). The Court will overlook the violation in this instance, but may continue future hearings, or disregard filings, for non- compliance with Sect. 1005(c). Legal standard. A demu rrer is used to challenge defects that appear on the face of the pleading, or from matters outside the pleading that are judicially noticeable. (Blank v. Kirwan (1985) 39 Cal.3d 31...

Excerpt: ...roduction of Documents, Set Two, and Requests for Admission, Set One from Defendant Herbert Perez is DENIED. As a preliminary matter, the motion is untimely. Notice of a motion to compel further responses must be given “given within 45 days of the service of the verifi ed response, or any supplemental verified response” otherwise “the requesting party waives any right to compel a further response to the” request for production or reques...

Excerpt: ...orandum in supp ort of the petition and by subsequent motion filed April 8, 2024, petitioners also requested this court seal the personal identification information in the operating agreement which is attached to the petition as attachment 4(b). The Motion to seal is GRA NTED. This court in exercising its discretion, after considering and balancing all the factors in California Rules of Court, rule 2.550 and NBC Subsidiary (KNBC -TV), Inc. v. S...

Excerpt: ... - 437.) Defendants' No tice of Motion incorrectly states that the hearing on this Motion will take place in Department 21. This matter will be heard in Department 24, located of 400 County Center, Redwood City, Ca. Defendants' Request for Judicial Notice (RJN) is GRANTED as foll ows: As to the document(s) filed in prior court proceedings, and as to the documents recorded with a County Recorder's office, the RJN is GRANTED. (Evid. C. § 452(...

Excerpt: ...ortation Holdings, L LC's and Akira Takei's Unopposed Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Prosecution, joined by Cross -Defendants Philip White and Brandon Lawrence, dba Sportscars Italiano, is GRANTED. Code of Civil Procedure § 583.360 provides than an action shall be brought to tr ial within five years after it was commenced. The five- year period begins to run on the date the action is filed against the defendant. Davalos v. County of Los Angele...

Excerpt: ...alleged in th e operative complaint to see whether they state a cause of action under any legal theory, as a matter of law. (New Livable California v. Association of Bay Area Governments (2020) 59 Cal.App.5th 709, 714 –715.) The demurrer may be made to the entire complai nt or to any of the cause of action therein. (CCP § 430.50(a).) To properly state a cause of action, a complaint must allege every element of that cause of action. (Shaeffer v...

Excerpt: ...ossession of the Property without permission of Plaintiff. Defendant's Demurrer is SUSTAINED with leave to amend. A. Legal standard on demurrer The purpose of a demurrer is to test the legal sufficiency of the facts alleged in the operative complaint to see whether they state a cause of action under any legal theory, as a matter of law. New Livable California v. Association of Bay Area Governments (2020) 59 Cal.App.5th 709, 714 –715. The demurr...

Excerpt: ...tled law that e ach party to a lawsuit must pay its own fees absent an applicable statute or an attorney fees provision in a valid contract. (Code Civ. Proc., § 1021; Amtower v. Photon Dynamics, Inc. (2008) 158 Cal.App.4th 1582, [as modified Feb. 15, 2008]; see also Royst er Construction Co. v. Urban West Communities (1995) 40 Cal.App.4th 1158, 1170 [“A contract which provides for the payment of ‘costs' alone does not usually include attorn...

Excerpt: ...April 25, 202 4. Sanctions as imposed below shall be paid no later than May 2, 2024. Plaintiff Jane Doe moves here to compel further responses and compel production with respect to three requests for production of documents nos. 10 and 13 –14 propounded to Defendant Gold en Gate Bell, LLC (“GGB”). Each seeks documents relating to the respective personnel files and background checks of three employees of GGB, who purportedly sexually harass...

Excerpt: ... a staffing agency wh ich placed her for a work assignment with its client, Alcon. Defendants now jointly move to compel arbitration of Plaintiff's claims. For the reasons set forth below, the motion is DENIED. As a preliminary matter, the Court SUSTAINS the evidentiary objecti ons raised by Plaintiff as to Mr. Gohil's declaration, and OVERRULES the evidentiary objections raised by Defendants as to Plaintiff's declaration. California law, like fe...

Excerpt: ...iving under the influence of alcohol. He was admonished that his driving privilege would be administratively suspended for one year or administratively revoked for two or three years by the DMV if he refused or failed to take a chemical test. Subsequently, Llanes ref used to take a chemical test of his breath or blood. Llanes timely exercised his right to request an administrative hearing regarding the suspension, and the DMV held a hearing via ...

Excerpt: ...Compel Further Responses to Requests for Production of Documents, Set Two, nos. 88, 89, 90 and 97 (“RFP”), from Defendant Vinod Bhardwaj (“Defendant”), is DENIED. This Motion appears to be untimely. The IDC Minute Order states that the parties agreed that any motion as t o these RFP would be timely if filed by February 29, 2024. (See December 19, 2023 Minute Order.) This Motion was not filed until March 1, 2024 though. Further, even if ...

Excerpt: ...order gra nting terminating sanctions against co -defendant Ramson Mumba, Lugo's spouse or former spouse based upon a hearing held on October 31, 2023. On April 25, 2022, Lugo in pro per filed her answer to the first amended complaint. She did not include her telepho ne number or an email address. The court does not remember her ever appearing at any hearing or conference. Mumba has represented to the court that Lugo does not have an email addr...

Excerpt: ...edwood City, CA, which is part of the Lynda Lake Gardens (“LLG”) development. In short, this action concerns Plaintiffs' access to the central lake in their housing development (“Lot A”) and its surrounding pathway easements. Among other matters, Plaintiffs primarily contend that the actions of the Homeowners' Association (“HOA”) and in particular, Defendant Gary Ernst as owner of the plot in between Plaintiffs' and the lake, prevent ...

Excerpt: ... Equity Growth Asset Management (“EGAM”) did not attempt to meet and confer with him before filing this motion. Under penalty of perjury, he denies EGAM's counsel's declaration that she called Suafai on four separate days, that no one picked up, that the number does not permit leaving a message, and that she sent an email a week before filing the motion. (See Jan. 16, 2024 Declaration of Joanna Kozubal, ¶¶ 3 –7.) Without weighing the cr...