Excerpt: ... duty by either defendant because neither defendant actually represented plaintiff and therefore did not engage in any conduct that breached any duty. The complaint also reveals on its face that it is barred by the applicable statute of limitations. Plaintiff alleges that any representation of plaintiff by appointed counsel ended on June 29, 2014 when her son was declared a ward of the court. It appears that plaintiff was aware she had suffered h...

Excerpt: ...duct of retaining and employing, dismissing from employment and removing from the rectory, a plaintiff who is alleged to have been a Rabbi employed to act as Rabbi of the Congregation and to provide religious duties and services. [¶¶ 10, 13, 14.] The court is bound by the doctrine of ecclesiastical abstention to abstain from making determinations concerning the propriety of that conduct. See Simpson v. Wells Lamont (5 th Cir. 1974) 494 F.2d 490...

Excerpt: ...uties pursuant to the parties' agreement, which it appears from the judgment plaintiff was unable to prove. This court was not the trial judge and does not know what the evidence was at trial and the declaration in support of the motion does not point to any evidence or facts of which the plaintiff was aware at the time of responding to the RFAs that informed the plaintiff that it could not prove defendant's failure to perform. For instance, the ...

Excerpt: ... There is no explanation for the failure to comply with the time requirements of section 430.40 and no facts are stated as to why this court should exercise its discretion to hear this untimely demurrer. Second, there is no meet and confer declaration, which is required under CCP § 430.41. The demurrer will not be considered until a proper meet and confer is conducted. The parties are ordered into the hallway to meet and confer in good faith, to...

Excerpt: ...ration. Pursuant to CCP § 1281.4, the court further orders that this action is stayed until arbitration has <0026003300030086000300 005a004b004800550048> the court has ordered arbitration, the court “shall, upon motion of a party to such action or proceeding, stay the action or proceeding until an arbitration is had in accordance with the order to arbitrate or until such earlier time as the court specifies.”) The request to dismiss this acti...

Excerpt: ...was not personally served, as the proof of service indicates, because he was in China at the time. (O'Brien Decl., ¶ 3.) The opposition fails to present anything to the contrary in the reply and therefore has not shown that O'Brien's statement is not credible. As to defendant Mingle, LLC, the proof of service shows substitute service upon its purported agent for service of process, Richard Aaron. The proof of substitute service is defective on t...

Excerpt: ...cts, Inc. (2008) 165 Cal.App.4th 1568, 1588 (“By simply hearing the motion to compel without first deciding whether discovery should be reopened for that purpose under all of the circumstances, the trial court transgressed the confines of the applicable principles of law and thereby abused its discretion.”) ...

Excerpt: ... lodestar fees of $124,096.25, which the court awards to moving party against plaintiffs/cross-defendants Max Young and Trinity Force International. Plaintiffs/cross-defendants fail to challenge any of the fees sought as excessive, duplicative or unrelated. Costs are to be awarded, if appropriate, pursuant to a timely-filed memorandum of costs and are not considered or awarded in connection with this motion for attorneys' fees. ...

Excerpt: ...which is not vicariously liable for any alleged negligence of its franchisee and there are no allegations from which it can be determined that BHH is being sued exclusively based on a theory of vicarious liability, rather than based on its own direct negligence. Motion to Strike Portions of First Amended Complaint is granted in part. The court orders stricken from the pleading at para. GN-1, the words “selected, hired, supervised, engaged and�...

Excerpt: ...) states “As part of the meet and confer process, the demurring party shall identify all of the specific causes of action that it believes are subject to demurrer and identify with legal support the basis of the deficiencies. The party who filed the complaint, cross-complaint, or answer shall provide legal support for its position that the pleading is legally sufficient or, in the alternative, how the complaint, cross-complaint, or answer could...

Excerpt: ...perior Court(1996) 12 Cal.4th 631, 645 (where fraud is alleged against a corporation, plaintiff must allege the names of the persons who made the misrepresentation, their authority to speak for the corporation; to whom they spoke, what they said or wrote; and when it was said or written.) Defendants' Request for Judicial Notice in Support of Motion, etc., is granted in part. The court takes judicial notice of the existence of the court documents,...

Excerpt: ...rotect that interest. Plaintiff's opposition does not challenge these arguments or factual showing. The request for expungement of the lis pendens is granted. Plaintiff has failed to establish by a preponderance of the evidence the probable validity of any real property claim and will be unable to do so given that plaintiff's claims have been reduced to a money judgment with no real property claim remaining. <0086000300170013001800 00550047004800...

Excerpt: ...nstead, the declaration establishes that on November 21, 2017, defendant, an attorney, was aware that her response was due on December 15, 2017. [Ex. F] Although on December 11, she asks plaintiff for a 30-day extension of time to January 16, 2018 [Ex. G], she did not respond within that time frame. On January 18, 2018, two days after the expiration of the purported 30-day extension, she forwarded to plaintiff an email dated January 8, 2018 in wh...

Excerpt: .... . against any party, person or attorney who unsuccessfully makes or opposes a motion to compel a further response to interrogatories, unless it finds that the one subject to the sanction acted with substantial justification or that other circumstances make the imposition of the sanction unjust.” The burden is on the party subject to sanction to show substantial justification or injustice. Mattco Forge, Inc. v. Arthur Young & Co. (1990) 223 Ca...

Excerpt: ...is “within 30 days after the service of the complaint . . . “ Pursuant to CCP section 435, a party may serve and file a motion to strike “within the time allowed to respond to a pleading. . . .,” which is thirty days from service (CCP section 412.20(a)(3)). The complaint was personally served upon defendant Safarian on April 13, 2018, making the demurrer and motion to strike due on or before May 13, 2018. However, they were not filed unti...

Excerpt: ..., the demurring party shall identify all of the specific causes of action that it believes are subject to demurrer and identify with legal support the basis of the deficiencies. The party who filed the complaint, cross-complaint, or answer shall provide legal support for its position that the pleading is legally sufficient or, in the alternative, how the complaint, cross-complaint, or answer could be amended to cure any legal insufficiency.” Pl...

Excerpt: ...oss-complaint with the court by close of business today. Motion of defendant and cross-defendant Flatiron Construction Corporation to require plaintiff Pirali to file undertaking: (1) Out of State Residence: The court finds that plaintiff resides in Nevada, out of state. (2) Reasonable Possibility Defendant Will Obtain Judgment: The court further finds that defendant Flatiron has established a reasonable possibility it will obtain judgment in thi...

Excerpt: ... matters specified in Plaintiff's Requests for Admissions (Set No. Two), attached to the motion as Exhibit 1, are deemed admitted as true and the documents admitted as genuine, pursuant to CCP § 2033.280(b) and (c). Monetary sanctions in the amount of $2,250 are awarded against defendant Terry Bleick, payable within 30 days. CCP §§ 2033.280(c), 2023.010(d), 2023.030(a). If substantially compliant responses were served prior to the hearing: Pla...

Excerpt: ...nc. to compel arbitration is denied. Defendant has failed to establish by a preponderance of the evidence the existence of a valid agreement to arbitrate. The arbitration provision is not initialed by any party other than the Owners/Plaintiffs; the moving papers and the reply fail to submit evidence that the Arbitration provision was initialed or agreed to by the Contractor; and, the provision expressly provides “In the event that Contractor an...

Excerpt: ...rior to the hearing on this motion, the court shall order that all matters specified in these Requests for Admissions be deemed admitted as true, pursuant to CCP § 2033.280(b) and (c). In any event, the court shall award monetary sanctions in the requested amount of $645 against defendant Jeffrey V. Thompson, payable within 30 days. CCP sections 2033.280(c), 2023.010(d), 2023.030(a) ...

Excerpt: ... for the Interrogatory Motion and $2,475 for the Document Motion. The motions are granted as set forth below. As for the Interrogatory Motion, the plaintiff is ordered to provide verified responses within 10 days. See Appleton v. Superior Court<0056005300520051005600 48005600030044005500480003[ tantamount to no responses at all.”]. Monetary sanctions in the amount of $690 in attorney's fees and $60 in costs are awarded against the plaintiff and...

Excerpt: ...tively, the defendant has presented uncontradicted evidence that plaintiff Leatrice Erlander is unable to establish the essential elements of her causes of action, as she cannot show that the defendant engaged in trespass, wrongful disposition of property, or a negligent act in connection with plaintiff's real or personal property. In the plaintiff's deposition, she admitted that she did not know who may have entered her residence and taken her p...

Excerpt: ...records; (2) those overriding interests support sealing the records; (3) there is a substantial probability that the overriding interests will be prejudiced if the records are not sealed; (4) the proposed sealing is as narrowly tailored as the circumstances permit; and (5) no less restrictive means exist to achieve the overriding interests. These findings are based on the facts that defendant has established that the material consists of trade se...

Excerpt: ...in the declaration). 2. The application/declaration does not state applicant's residence and office address. 3. The application/declaration does not state the dates of admission of the applicant to the courts listed. 4. The application/declaration does not state that the applicant is a member in good standing of those courts. 5. The application/declaration does not state whether the applicant is currently suspended or disbarred in any court. 6. T...

Excerpt: ... and this court found plaintiff to be the prevailing party before the cost memorandum was filed. The court finds that the filing of the memorandum of costs by a party who has not been designated the prevailing party, without any legal basis, is an act which would be viewed by any reasonable attorney as conduct completely lacking legal merit. It is frivolous and in bad faith and accordingly, the court orders defendant Lefco, Inc. to pay the reason...