Excerpt: ...arty should be prepared to address the date counsel met and conferred and why it selected a hearing date three and a half months from filing when earlier dates were available on the court's reservation system. Defendant's answer shall be filed and served within 10 days. Discussion In this landlord‐tenant habitability case, Plaintiffs allege causes of action for: 1) violation of Civil Code § 1942.4; 2) tortious breach of the warranty of habitab...

Excerpt: ...12/23/19) 2. Petition to approve compromise of pending action (minor, with special needs trust) (filed 12/24/19); TENTATIVE RULING 1. Plaintiffs' motion to seal the Petition is GRANTED. The court also orders the unredacted version of the Order approving the compromise be sealed and a redacted version be filed in its place. 2. Re minor's compromise: SUBJECT TO HEARING AND PERSONAL APPEARANCE THEREON by the guardian ad litem/Plaintiff (CRC 7.952(a)...

Excerpt: ...quire whether the parties are amenable to advancing the 3/19/20 CMC to this date. Discussion This is a two‐plaintiff wrongful eviction case from a duplex occupied by Plaintiffs who no attempt to allege IIED in the third cause of action, prompting the defendant landlord's demurrer. Defendant argues that Plaintiffs do not allege facts that (1) Defendant's conduct was outrageous; or (2) Plaintiffs' purported emotional distress was severe. The cour...

Excerpt: ..., Plaintiffs' Request for Default Judgment form CIV‐100, and declarations of Hines and Spurgeon. Proof of service (POS) of these documents was not filed until 2/24/20. After receipt of this POS, the court has reviewed the instant request. The court docket does reflect the following documents were filed as of 1/16/20: 1. Request for Entry of Default/Court Judgment (CIV‐100) (2 pages only; amounts and balance as to Veale only, not Surfaces U.S....

Excerpt: ...Rafael G. Cunanan and Socorro Cunanan's motion for summary judgment/adjudication is DENIED. Discussion Plaintiffs Rafael G. Cunanan (“Rafael”) and Socorro Cunanan (“Socorro”) (collectively “Plaintiffs”) move for summary judgment on the first amended complaint or, in the alternative, summary adjudication of the 1 st – 8th causes of action in the first amended complaint. Procedural issues There may be a notice issue with both moving a...

Excerpt: ...r on grounds of uncertainty is OVERRULED except as noted below. The demurrer to the 3 rd through 13 th causes of action is sustained with leave to amend. The motion to strike is granted in part and denied in part, as follows: (1) “Irrelevant material:” a. Deny as to Paragraphs 3 and 38 (regarding habitability statutory provisions); b. Grant as to Paragraphs 21‐21 (regarding alter ego allegations) with leave to amend; c. Grant as to Paragrap...

Excerpt: ...arvest Management Sub LLC, Harvest Facility Holdings LP, Holiday AL Management Sub LLC, and Scott Wilson) TENTATIVE RULING Defendants Saving Grace Care LLC, Sandra Duenas, and joining Defendants Jon R. Pierson, Harvest Management Sub TRS Corp., Harvest Management Sub LLC, Harvest Facility Holdings LP, Holiday AL Management Sub LLC, and Scott Wilson's Motion to Strike Plaintiff's request for punitive damages is GRANTED with leave to amend. See ins...

Excerpt: ...t. 11, Spring Street Courthouse). As a result, Judge Ongkeko had not reviewed this file earlier. Having reviewed this file for the hearing this date, Judge Ongkeko now makes the following disclosure: Judge Ongkeko discloses that he knows Charles Mathews on a professional basis. Judge Ongkeko does not socialize with Mr. Mathews. Around approximately early to mid‐2002, while closing cases at his then‐firm (Collins, Collins, et al.) and prior to...

Excerpt: ...Properties, The Sterling Family Trust, and Susan Robman's demurrer to the third cause of action of the complaint is OVERRULED. Defendants' demurrer to the fifth cause of action is SUSTAINED with leave to amend. See instructions/order on last page re leave to amend. Defendants Sterling and Robman's demurrer is OVERRULED. Defendants' motion to strike Plaintiff's complaint as to paragraph 66 and page 15, line 8 is MOOT based on the ruling on the dem...

Excerpt: ...ainant Global Aviation Resources, Inc.'s First Amended Cross‐Complaint is denied in its entirety. Allflight shall file and serve its answer to the FAC within 10 days. Discussion This action arises out of a denied warranty coverage claim by Plaintiff Unical Aviation, Inc. ("Plaintiff") for a defective Fan Inlet Diffuser Housing (“FIDH”) part for a Boeing 777. Plaintiff purchased the FIDH from Defendant Global Aviation Resources, Inc. (“Glo...

Excerpt: ...ney's fees is GRANTED in part; DENIED in part. Reasonable attorney's fees are awarded in favor of Plaintiffs in the amount of $29,837.50. Costs and expenses are addressed concurrently in connection with Defendant's motion to tax costs. 2. Defendant's motion to tax costs is GRANTED in part. Plaintiffs' costs are reduced by $369.67. The court awards costs in favor of Plaintiffs in the amount of $3,928.77. 3. The parties' respective evidentiary obje...

Excerpt: ...T AMENDED COMPLAINT PERTAINING TO PUNITIVE DAMAGES AND ATTORNEY FEES (both filed 1/10/20) TENTATIVE RULING Defendant's demurrer to the first cause of action is sustained without leave to amend. Defendant's demurrers to the second, third, fourth, sixth, and eighth causes of action are overruled. Defendant's motion to strike punitive damage claims is denied. Defendant's motion to strike the claim for attorney's fees at lines 4, 8, 12, and 16 on pag...

Excerpt: ...efendant Radix's motion for leave to file a cross‐complaint is GRANTED. A stand‐alone version of the cross‐complaint shall be filed forthwith. The cross‐complaint is deemed served this date on all parties served with the motion. A responsive pleading shall be filed and served within 15 days. Discussion Here, Radix contends that its cross‐complaint arises out of the same incident alleged in Plaintiff's complaint. Radix argues that becaus...

Excerpt: ...rety. Defendant Hyundai Motor America's motion to strike is DENIED. Defendant shall file and serve its answer within 10 days. Note to counsel: To avoid another appearance on 3/19/20, if the parties agree, the court is prepared to advance the Case Management Conference to this date and set the matter for trial (approximately late Jan. or early Feb. 2021). Discussion In this lemon law case, Defendant filed its demurrer to Plaintiff's complaint on g...

Excerpt: ...t, against Plaintiff, on all causes of action. It was further ordered that “the Lis Pendens previously filed and/or recorded by Plaintiff” be expunged. The judgment states that Defendant is entitled to the recovery of attorney's fees and costs as provided by statute against Plaintiff. Defendant timely filed his memorandum of costs, seeking, inter alia, recovery of attorney's fees in the amount of $48,019.60. Plaintiff now moves for an order t...

Excerpt: ... served a proposed judgment which the court intends to file after entering the total of fees and costs awarded ($41,574.33). Discussion Plaintiff moves for attorney's fees as the prevailing party on summary adjudication on the 2 nd, 4 th, 5 th, and 7th Causes of Action against Defendant Paul Korver. Plaintiff moves on the ground that the agreements entered into by Defendant provide for the recovery of attorneys' fees and expenses. Civil Code § 1...

Excerpt: ...f errata filed). Defendants' motion is DENIED. DISCUSSION In this legal malpractice action, Robert Clark “Sonny” Wood II and Access Medical LLC (collectively “Plaintiffs”) retained Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani LLP, fka Gordon & Rees LLP (“GRSM”), John Phillips, and Wild, Carter & Tipton (collectively “Defendants”) to represent Plaintiffs in connection with a case in the Fresno Superior Court—Ted Switzer v. Flournoy Management, ...

Excerpt: ... as successor by acquisition of both Krylon Products Group and Valspar Corporation); Masterchem Industries LLC; and Sunnyside Corp. Opposing parties: Plaintiffs William Dwight Touchberry and Laurie Touchberry TENTATIVE RULING Defendant's motion to transfer is DENIED. Defendants Wal‐Mart, Union Rubber Inc., The Sherwin‐Williams Company, Masterchem Industries LLC, and Sunnyside Corporation's joinder requests are denied as MOOT. DISCUSSION Summa...

Excerpt: ...motion to quash Plaintiff's deposition subpoena is GRANTED. Discussion Defendants Desmond and Board move for an order quashing the subpoena or, alternatively, limiting the deposition subpoena for production of business records that Plaintiff served on Inspectors of Election LLC. The motion is unopposed. ANALYSIS When a subpoena has been issued requiring the attendance of a witness or the production of documents, electronically stored information,...

Excerpt: ...ADMISSIONS (SET 1) AGAINST JULIO R. SALAZAR; REQUEST FOR MONETARY SANCTIONS IN THE AMOUNT OF $1,904.00 AGAINST DEFENDANT JULIO R. SALAZAR AND HIS COUNSEL OF RECORD (filed 11/18/19) TENTATIVE RULING (1) Plaintiff's motion to compel further responses to Special Interrogatories (Set 1) is:  DENIED as to Special Interrogatories 1‐34, 48‐81, 95‐12; and  GRANTED as to Special Interrogatories 35‐47, 82‐93, 129‐140. (2) Plaintiff's moti...

Excerpt: ...,712.00 $2,902.10. COSTS: $1,666.00 TOTAL: $133,614.10 SUMMARY OF CASE On November 6, 2018, Plaintiffs Li Zhenwei and James Elaine filed this lawsuit against Defendants Adarsha Benjamin and More and More and, LLC, dba MAMA Gallery for: C/A 1: Breach of Written Contract C/A 2: Wrongful Detention C/A 3: Open Account / Unjust Enrichment C/A 4: Account Stated C/A 5: Money Damages (Bounced Check) C/A 6: Promissory Fraud C/A 7: Conversion C/A 8: Illega...

Excerpt: ...STAINED as to 3‐9, 11‐12. Defendant's motion for summary judgment is DENIED. Discussion Plaintiffs Geripsa Molina and Rosa Molina (minor by Geripsa Molina as guardian ad litem) sue Defendant Walgreen Co. for claims arising from Defendant's employee's false accusation of merchandise theft. Defendant now moves for summary judgment asserting that the conduct of Walgreen employees is protected under the doctrine of Shopkeeper's Privilege (Penal C...

Excerpt: ...MINATING SANCTIONS (filed 12/24/19) TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiff's request for judicial notice is GRANTED. Defendants' objections and motion to strike portions of declarations and the RJN is DENIED. Defendant David's joinder to codefendants' opposition is GRANTED. Plaintiff's motion for terminating sanctions is DENIED. Defendant's request for monetary sanctions is DENIED. Discussion Before the court is Plaintiff Taylor's motion for terminating sanc...

Excerpt: ...vision (b). Defendants' motion to set aside default and default judgment is GRANTED, conditionally. Defendants shall pay Plaintiff and Plaintiff's counsel $3,500 in attorney fees for Plaintiff's counsel's work that could have been avoided were it not for Defendants' neglect. The payment must be received by Plaintiff's counsel no later than 15 days from the hearing date. The answer attached to the moving papers is deemed served on Plaintiff as of ...

Excerpt: ...34, 35, 36, and 37. Defendant Alliance's motion is DENIED as to:  Special interrogatory 39; and  Document requests 41, 42, and 44. Both requests for sanctions are DENIED. DISCUSSION On November 7, 2019, Defendant Alliance filed this motion to compel further responses. On November 25, 2019, Plaintiffs filed an opposition. On November 27, 2019, Alliance filed a reply. On December 6, 2019, the court continued the hearing to January 8, 2020. Su...

Excerpt: ...d-alone original version of the pleading. Summary of Case Plaintiffs Min H. Lee and John Yoo (“Plaintiffs”) sue Defendants Azam Samikh (“Samikh”), Bijan Soleymani (“Soleymani”), Armando Aguirre (“Aguirre”), and Tradewinds Investment & Development, Inc. dba Legendary Commercial Real Estate (“Tradewinds”) (collectively “Defendants”) for fraud related to leasing commercial real estate property. Plaintiffs operate a dental off...

Excerpt: ...plis LLC, Ernie Gallardo, Anaiz Delgado, and Ethan Heckman for discrimination, harassment, and wrongful termination due to Plaintiff's age, disability, and veteran status. Prior to filing this action, Plaintiff filed an administrative complaint with the Department of Fair employment and Housing. On September 14, 2018, Plaintiff received a right to sue notice. (Compl., ¶ 20.) On October 9, 2018, Plaintiff filed this lawsuit for: C/A 1: Against Ex...

Excerpt: ... to review in court before the hearing. ******* 4/25/19 Dept. 73 Rafael Ongkeko, Judge presiding SHAUNA CHAPPELL v. CEDARS SINAI MEDICAL CENTER, et al. (18STCV02059) Counsel for plaintiff/opposing party: Jackie Abellada (Estelle, etc.) Counsel for defendant/moving party Ronald Lang, M.D.: Jamie Mason (Doyle, etc.) DEMURRER TO PLAINTIFF'S SECOND AMENDED COMPLAINT; MOTION TO STRIKE CLAIM FOR PUNITIVE DAMAGES (filed 4/3/19) TENTATIVE RULING Defendan...

Excerpt: ... review in court before the hearing. ************* 4/19/19 Dept. 73 Rafael Ongkeko, Judge presiding GEMCAP LENDING I, LLC v. MICHAELIAN & KOHLBERG, INC. (BC713930) PLAINTIFF GEMCAP'S REQUEST FOR ENTRY OF DEFAULT JUDGMENT (1st request rec'd 3/11/19) TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiff's request for entry of default is DENIED without prejudice to a re-submission. The OSC is continued to _______________, 2019. DISCUSSION Factual and procedural background Pla...

Excerpt: ... to review in court before the hearing. ******* 4/5/19 Dept. 73 Rafael Ongkeko, Judge presiding KENT CHEVLI v. 1665 Main Street Group LLC, et al. (19STCV02817) Counsel for plaintiff: David Farkas (DLA Piper) Counsel for defendants: Michael McClellan; Jack Rubin; Carl Gregory (Newmeyer & Dillion) Matters: 1. Applications for pro hac vice admission (filed 2/25/19; cont. from 3/21/19)) 2. Special motion to strike portions of plaintiff's complaint un...

Excerpt: ... to review in court before the hearing. ******* 4/5/19 Dept. 73 Rafael Ongkeko, Judge presiding MAYRA ALEJANDRA SILVA v. JULIO RAFAEL SALAZAR (18STCV08596) PLAINTIFF'S APPLICATION FOR INTERLOCUTORY JUDGMENT / PARTITION BY SALE (filed 3/14/19) TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiff's application for interlocutory judgment is DENIED for the following reasons: (1) Plaintiff's complaint failed to join Wells Fargo as a Defendant; (2) Plaintiff did not record a No...

Excerpt: ... review in court before the hearing. ******* 4/4/19 Dept. 73 Rafael Ongkeko, Judge presiding LANDEN BARRETTE, a minor by and through his Guardian ad Litem ANNA BARRETTE, et al. v. BLUE SHIELD OF CALIFORNIA (BC697564) Counsel for plaintiffs: Scott Glovsky; Ari Dybnis (L.O. Glovsky) Counsel for defendant Blue Shield of California: Gregory Pimstone; John Fogarty; Sarah Gettings (Manatt, etc.) MATTERS: 1. DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO SEAL CERTAIN DOCUMENTS ...

Excerpt: ... review in court before the hearing. ******* 4/3/19 Dept. 73 Rafael Ongkeko, Judge presiding JOSEPH SHEPLER v. BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY (BC705095) Counsel for plaintiff: Dustin Collier; V. Joshua Socks (Collier Law Firm); Ryan Saba; Tyler Vanderpool (Rosen Saba) Counsel for defendant: Elizabeth McNulty; Christine Diaz Reynolds (Taylor Anderson) PLAINTIFF'S MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE A FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT (filed 3/6/1...

Excerpt: ... to review in court before the hearing. 4/3/19 Dept. 73 Rafael Ongkeko, Judge presiding SUNPOWER NORTH AMERICA LLC v. SOLAR OPTIMUM INC dba SOLAR OPTIMUM DESIGN AND ELECTRICAL (18STCV08303) Counsel for plaintiff/opposing party: Wayne Terry; Christopher Crowell (Hemar, etc.) Counsel for defendant/moving party: Michael Baker; Jonathan Sutton (Snell, etc.) DEFENDANT'S DEMURRER TO COMPLAINT (filed 2/1/19) TENTATIVE RULING Defendant's demurrer to the ...

Excerpt: ...s facts sufficient to constitute a conversion cause of action. DISCUSSION (For online posting, please note: Unfortunately, the court's tentative ruling website, which is the source of this version, is not able to show certain formatting that may be contained in the original, such as the court's use of footnotes/tables (here, none), boldface, italics, or the underscoring of text or case citations. Footnotes, if any, are added to the text at the en...

Excerpt: ...AMERICA N.A.'S DEMURRER TO THE FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT; MOTION TO STRIKE PORTIONS OF PLAINTIFF'S FAC (filed 3/6/19) TENTATIVE RULING Defendant's request for judicial notice is GRANTED as to Exhibits A-C. Defendant's request is DENIED as to Exhibit D. (Even if granted, the results would be the same.) Defendant's demurrer to the declaratory relief cause of action is OVERRULED. Defendant's motion to strike is DENIED. Defendant BANA shall file and se...

Excerpt: ...he fourth cause of action for conversion is OVERRULED. Richie's answer shall be filed and served no later than 4/8/19. DISCUSSION (For online posting, please note: Unfortunately, the court's tentative ruling website, which is the source of this version, is not able to show certain formatting that may be contained in the original, such as the court's use of footnotes/tables (here, none), boldface, italics, or the underscoring of text or case citat...

Excerpt: ... review in court before the hearing. ******* 3/22/19 Dept. 73 Rafael Ongkeko, Judge presiding DANNY RUIZ AGUILAR v. DIGNITY HEALTH dba CAL. HOSP. MED. CENTER; et al. (BC712630) Demurrers (6) and Motions to Strike (3) re First Amended Complaint: DEMURRER AND MOTION TO STRIKE (filed 11.20.18 & 01.25.19) (Defendant Dignity Health dba California Hospital Medical Center) DEMURRER AND MOTION TO STRIKE (filed 11.20.18 & 02.11.19) (Defendant Michelle Hen...

Excerpt: ...ial discovery of Defendant's net worth is DENIED without prejudice. DISCUSSION (For online posting, please note: Unfortunately, the court's tentative ruling website, which is the source of this version, is not able to show certain formatting that may be contained in the original, such as the court's use of footnotes/tables (here, none), boldface, italics, or the underscoring of text or case citations. Footnotes, if any, are added to the text at t...

Excerpt: ...her): Russell R. Arens; Richard E. Nusbaum (Law Office of Russell R. Arens) MATTERS (in order of earliest filing date): 1. SPECIAL MOTIONS TO STRIKE (CCP § 425.16) (as to original complaint) (filed 11/5/18 and 11/8/18; hearings 1/2/19 and 1/3/19, cont. by stip. to 2/13/19; cont. by court to 3/15/19 and 3/18/19) Moving parties: Defendants David Cooley and Todd Barnes [Note: Other than an erroneous reference to a non-existent declaration of Benjam...

Excerpt: ... RULING Plaintiff's evidentiary objections are OVERRULED. Defendants' motion to compel arbitration is GRANTED. Plaintiff's request to present oral testimony is DENIED. Except as ordered herein, all future dates are vacated and the case is stayed pending completion of arbitration. The court sets an Order to Show Cause why the case should not be dismissed on the ground that all disputes will have been resolved in arbitration, with the court retaini...

Excerpt: ... than March 22, 2019. DISCUSSION (For online posting, please note: Unfortunately, the court's tentative ruling website, which is the source of this version, is not able to show certain formatting that may be contained in the original, such as the court's use of footnotes or tables (none here), boldface, italics, or the underscoring of text or case citations. Footnotes, if any, are added to the text at the end of the document. A hard copy will be ...

Excerpt: ...For online posting, please note: Unfortunately, the court's tentative ruling website, which is the source of this version, is not able to show certain formatting that may be contained in the original, such as the court's use of footnotes/tables (here, none), boldface, italics, or the underscoring of text or case citations. Footnotes, if any, are added to the text at the end of the document. A hard copy will be available for the parties to review ...

Excerpt: ...nts shall file and serve their answer(s) no later than March 18, 2019. DISCUSSION (For online posting, please note: Unfortunately, the court's tentative ruling website, which is the source of this version, is not able to show certain formatting that may be contained in the original, such as the court's use of footnotes and tables (here, none), boldface, italics, or the underscoring of text or case citations. Footnotes, if any, are added to the te...

Excerpt: ... of motion for one or more of the following purposes . . . (1) To quash service of summons on the ground of lack of jurisdiction of the court over him or her.” Defendants here argue that service was improperly made upon them. The proofs of service filed on December 24, 2018, state that all Defendants were served on December 13, 2018, by substitute servce at an address on Monte Mar Drive in Los Angeles, and that documents were left with “Anna ...

Excerpt: ...N (For online posting, please note: Unfortunately, the court's tentative ruling website, which is the source of this version, is not able to show certain formatting that may be contained in the original, such as the court's use of footnotes (here, none), tables (here, one), boldface, italics, or the underscoring of text or case citations. Footnotes, if any, are added to the text at the end of the document. A hard copy will be available for the pa...

Excerpt: ...Y ACTION PENDING ARBITRATION (filed 1/23/19) TENTATIVE RULING All matters are CONTINUED to March 29, 2019 (Defendant's reserved hearing date for its motion for an order to compel arbitration). On the same date, March 29, 2019, the court sets an Order to Show Cause why USC should not be joined as an indispensable defendant in this action (CCP § 389). The parties are instructed to file a joint statement on the issue by 3/22/19. In light of the oth...

Excerpt: ...e continued hearing date is _____________, 2019. Defendant shall file a status report five calendar days before that date. DISCUSSION Case No. BC708535 – Class Action Lawsuit Currently Not Related In an earlier case filed on June 6, 2018, plaintiff here, Angel Contreras-Teo, filed a class action against defendant here, Golden State Food Corps, Case. No. BC708535, alleging causes of action for: (1) failure to provide meal periods; (2) failure to...

Excerpt: ...ATIVE RULING Defendants' motion for attorneys' fees is GRANTED, but reduced to $127,112. The clerk shall insert the amount awarded into the judgment. DISCUSSION (Please note: Unfortunately, the court's tentative ruling website, which is the source of this version, is not able to show certain formatting that may be contained in the original, such as the court's use of footnotes (here, none), tables (here, two), boldface, italics, or the underscori...

Excerpt: ... Center, LLC TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiff's motion to compel further responses to Form Interrogatories, General, Set 1, is GRANTED as to interrogatory 15.1. Plaintiff's motion is DENIED as to interrogatories 12.1-12.3. Requests for sanctions are granted in the amount of $1,750 payable by each party to the other. Discussion On June 11, 2018, Plaintiff propounded Form Interrogatories, Set 1, on Defendant. After Plaintiff provided two extensions, Defe...