Excerpt: ...vidual settlement. Paragraph 34 of Neil Pedersen's declaration says that counsel is getting 40% and plaintiff is getting the other 60% minus costs. But paragraph 1 of the Settlement Agreement and General Release reflects that counsel is getting 50% for fees, 40% is going toward liens, and plaintiff is getting 10% herself. Plaintiff must clarify, since this information could be relevant to the PAGA settlement. Section 6(d) of the PAGA Settlement A...

Excerpt: ... range of their proportional share of liability for plaintiff's alleged damages. The settlement is not so far out of the ballpark as to be inconsistent with the equitable goals of CCP §877.6. Plaintiff has agreed to allocate $181,885 of the $1,875,000 WRAP policy limits settlement to window defects, which will offset any judgment plaintiff obtains against Milgard. That figure was reached based on 10% of a vinyl window replacement cost estimate o...

Excerpt: ...Review Hearing is set for September 7, 2018 at 9:00 a.m. Both sides' Requests for Judicial Notice are granted. Based on Iskanian v. CLS Transportation Los Angeles, LLC (2014) 59 Cal. 4th 348, 386-88, and Esparza v. KS Industries, L.P. (2017) 13 Cal. App. 5th 1228, 1243-46, plaintiffs are required to arbitrate their individual, victim-specific claims, recovery on which they will personally retain, but may have the court determine their representat...

Excerpt: ...' attorney cost breakdowns, an Administrator declaration and invoice, and plaintiffs' declarations to support enhancement requests, must be filed no later than 16 calendar days before the Final Fairness Hearing date, to provide enough time for court review. Plaintiffs should explain why their counsel should be awarded 35% of the settlement amount as attorneys' fees, rather than the 33 1/3% which most plaintiffs' attorneys request in these cases. ...

Excerpt: ...inadequate. Plaintiffs' motion simply repeats the arguments they unsuccessfully made to the jury. The jury awarded plaintiffs only $2,000 in damages based on their allegations of numerous, significant problems with the house they purchased. Plaintiffs' Motion for New Trial is denied. Plaintiffs have failed to establish any of the criteria set forth in CCP §657. The award of damages was adequate. CCP §657(5). The evidence was sufficient to justi...

Excerpt: ... on reply.) Plaintiff contends she gave her password to Brittany Rodriguez, and that Rodriguez may have filled out the agreement online on plaintiff's behalf. However, Rodriguez expressly denies doing so, and more importantly, Roth has shown that on the same day the arbitration agreement was signed using plaintiff's name, someone also electronically filled out a direct deposit form with plaintiff's bank information as well as a W-4 tax form for p...

Excerpt: ...oth the Class Action Settlement Agreement (Settlement Agreement) and the proposed orders omit the provision in the Notice of Pendency of Class Action Settlement and Hearing Date for Court Approval (Notice to Class) that everyone receiving money will be paid in four installments, after defendant makes each payment to the Administrator. The $45,000.00 estimated Administrator fee appears high for a class and settlement of this size. An explanation i...

Excerpt: ...equest for monetary sanctions is not broken down by hourly rate or number of hours spent, resulting in plaintiff's failure to establish a reasonable amount. The court has awarded an amount it considers reasonable. Plaintiff's Motion to Compel Further Responses to Form Interrogatories is granted. Defendant Christina LeBlanc must serve full and complete responses, without objections, to Form Interrogatory #15.1 and 17.1 within 20 days. Plaintiff's ...

Excerpt: ... the notice of settlement to the class). The court sees no reason to require Class Members to file claims. Unless counsel can explain to the court why such a provision should be required, it will have to be deleted. The release language in the notice to class (p. 3) covers claims “that were or could have been alleged under California law based on the factual allegations contained in the First Amended complaint”, but the settlement agreement (...

Excerpt: ...dant is entitled to judgment on the pleadings. However, based on the case of CashCall, Inc. v. Superior Court (2008) 159 Cal. App. 4th 273, 284, the court should allow plaintiff an opportunity to amend the complaint to add a new individual plaintiff. Defendant is ordered to give notice of the ruling. ...

Excerpt: ...efusing a party leave to amend his pleadings so that he may properly present his case”. Morgan v. Superior Court (1959) 172 Cal. App. 2d 527, 530. Plaintiff is not changing the nature of this case, and his new claims are based on the same nucleus of operative facts. All of plaintiff's proposed new causes of action appear to be based on the same overall transaction and course of events. The amendment would not result in any undue prejudice to de...

Excerpt: ...l from the Judgment is consistent with the fact that plaintiffs should not be considered prevailing parties in this action. Defendant is ordered to give notice of the ruling unless notice is waived. ...

Excerpt: ...ffs' unopposed Motion to Compel Further Responses to Special Interrogatories, Set One, is granted. Defendants Hyder M. Mukadam and Mukadam Medical Center, Inc. must serve full and complete responses, without objections, to Special Interrogatory Nos. 17, 21, 23, 25, 33-34 and 36-37 within 20 days. Defendant's requests for monetary sanctions are granted in the amount of $1,500 against defendants Hyder M. Mukadam and Mukadam Medical Center, Inc. and...

Excerpt: ...y motion to be heard after the discovery motion cutoff date, the party must first file a motion under CCP §2024.050 for leave to have the motion heard after the discovery motion cutoff date, and must meet and confer over that issue. However, plaintiff filed its motions on September 25, 2017, 25 days before the last day for motions to be heard based on the November 6, 2017 trial date, which was October 20, 2017. Nonetheless, court congestion caus...

Excerpt: ...t and discovery motions, favoring the defendants. Since the Omars are unrelated to Markad, however, CSS should be able to adequately prosecute that action. Moreover, that action has been stayed (and since that case is not consolidated with the others, Wardak should have filed a separate motion in that action). Wardak is a 25% or 50% shareholder of CSS, has a meaningful interest in CSS's success in the actions, and thus has standing to maintain de...

Excerpt: ... heard later as to the judicial reference, to object that their contract or subcontract includes no such reference provision, or to voice other opposition as they deem fit. The inclusion of those other parties in the reference proceeding must await a stipulation, ex parte request or noticed motion. Plaintiff's Request for Judicial Notice is granted. It is undisputed that Article 16 of the prime contract between plaintiff and defendant Western Nat...

Excerpt: ...'s instructions). Counsel also should provide a red-lined version of any revised papers (including the notice of settlement to the class). The court sees no reason not to immediately file the First Amended Complaint, which asserts PAGA claims. The court approves the parties' stipulation for the filing of the First Amended Complaint and orders plaintiffs to file their First Amended Complaint as a separate document within one week, and to mail-serv...

Excerpt: ...lemental responses have mooted the original responses. Plaintiff is incorrect that when defendant responds over its objections it is allowed to give only partial responses – those responses will be treated as full and complete, but with defendant reserving its right to object to plaintiff using the responses as evidence. Plaintiff's motion to compel further responses to form interrogatories is granted as to #1.1, 3.1-3.6, 15.1, and 50.1- 50.6, ...

Excerpt: ...ness Hearing, including detailed hourly breakdowns of plaintiff's attorneys to support a lodestar cross-check, detailed plaintiff's attorney cost breakdowns, an Administrator declaration and invoice, and plaintiff's declarations to support enhancement requests, must be filed no later than 16 calendar days before the Final Fairness Hearing date, to provide enough time for court review. Plaintiff is ordered to give notice to defense counsel unless ...

Excerpt: ...filed or heard. The parties should review the statute and be prepared to address whether that process would be beneficial, and/or whether a discovery referee should be appointed for this case. In any event, due to the court's unavailability the motions presently set for March 16, 2018 are continued to March 23, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. on the court's own motion, and the Status Conference presently set for March 23, 2018 at 1:30 p.m. is advanced to 10:0...

Excerpt: ...aid wage and Labor Code violation claims of other aggrieved employees are unsettled and are dismissed without prejudice. The court sets a Final Report Hearing for May 11, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. to confirm that distribution of the approved amounts is complete. Any supplemental papers to be filed in conjunction with the Final Report Hearing are due at least two weeks before the hearing date. Plaintiff is ordered to give notice of the ruling unless noti...

Excerpt: ...ned version of any revised papers (including the Notice of Settlement to the class). The moving papers variously reference an estimated class size of over 1,000 (p. 2 of settlement agreement), 1,560 (p. 1 of points and authorities) and 1,650 (Administrator's attached invoice). Which is it, and what is the most accurate class size estimate at this time? The settlement agreement suggests that the Administrator will resolve any workweek disputes. Th...

Excerpt: ...e amount it owes AWPA due to AWPA's judgment against KDF. However, KDF's cross- complaint which is going to trial is against Paul Harper, not AWPA. Although KDF named AWPA as a cross-defendant, the court sustained AWPA's demurrer to KDF's cross-complaint without leave to amend on December 10, 2014, and KDF did not appeal from the ensuing September 9, 2015 Judgment. Thus, AWPA is not responsible for any damages KDF may recover on its cross-complai...

Excerpt: ... favoring amendment is so strong, “it is a rare case in which a court will be justified in refusing a party leave to amend his pleadings so that he may properly present his case”. Morgan v. Superior Court (1959) 172 Cal. App. 2d 527, 530. Plaintiff is not changing the nature of this case, and his new claims are based on the same nucleus of operative facts. The amendment would not result in any undue prejudice to defendants, since the new alle...