Excerpt: ...endant Board of Trustees of CSU's Motion for Summary Adjudication is DENIED. I. 3 rd cause of action for promissory estoppel—DENY A. Defendant fails to establish that the promise of lifetime employment was supported by bargained for consideration Under the doctrine of promissory estoppel, “a promisor is bound when he should reasonably expect a substantial change of position, either by act or forbearance, in reliance on his promise, if injusti...

Excerpt: ...sed on CC §1717(b)(2) and DENIED as to the 2 nd cause of action for fraud for failure to show an enforceable contract exists that would allow for recovery of fees incurred in connection with that cause of action. I. Plaintiff's 1 st and 3 rd through 8 th causes of action were actions “on the contract” subject to Civil Code §1717. Plaintiff's 2 nd cause of action is a tort claim not subject to CC §1717. A. Applicability of CC §1717 to cont...

Excerpt: ...rer to the 2 nd cause of action for professional negligence, 6 th cause of action for fraud and concealment, 7 th cause of action for intentional misrepresentation, 8 th cause of action for negligent misrepresentation, 9 th cause of action for constructive battery-enema, 11 th cause of action for breach of fiduciary duty, 12 th cause of action for intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED) and 13 th cause of action for IIED is OVERRULED....

Excerpt: ... Plaintiff Andrew Cohen's Motion for Leave to File a Second Amended Complaint is GRANTED. Plaintiff is ordered to file the SAC under separate cover. Cohen adequately explains failure to plead these violations earlier for purposes of leave to amend under CCP §473(a). “Courts must apply a policy of liberality in permitting amendments at any stage of the proceeding, including during trial, when no prejudice to the opposing party is shown.” P&D ...

Excerpt: ...nitsky Company TENTATIVE RULING Defendants' Demurrer is to the 2 nd cause of action for breach of the implied covenant and the 5th cause of action for fraud is OVERRULLED. Defendants Demurrer to the 6 th cause of action for violation of B&PC 17200 is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND. A. 2 nd cause of action for breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing— OVERRULE “There is implied in every contract a covenant by each party not ...

Excerpt: ...NIED. There are triable issues of material fact as to each cause of action. OBJECTIONS TO EVIDENCE: Plaintiffs' Objections to the Dec. of L. Mink, Nos. 1, 7-8, 27, 24 are SUSTAINED. The remaining are OVERRULED. Defendants' objections to the Dec. of Luigi Interlandi, Nos. 23-24, 26, 29 (in part) 30, 38, 41, 42 are SUSTAINED. The remaining are OVERRULED. Defendants' objections to the Dec. of Gianfranco Interlandi, Nos. 2, 3, 11, 14, 17, 19-21, 23 (...

Excerpt: ...tional Association TENTATIVE RULING Defendants' Petition to Compel Arbitration and Stay is GRANTED. REASONING Defendants petition to compel arbitration of the remaining 1 st c/a for breach of the Loan Documents against Defendant N977CB Holdings, LLC and the 2 nd c/a for breach of the Charter Agreement/Subordination Agreement based on ¶6.5 of the Aircraft Use Agreement against Jet Edge. Defendants argue that (1) although the Loan Documents and Ch...

Excerpt: ... PARTY: Defendant Kiarash Zohgi Tehrani TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiff's Motion to Set Aside Judgment Filed 11-6-19 and Order for Fees filed 11-6-19 and order Dismissing Case on 3-21-19 (and entered on 3-27-19) is DENIED. The Court dismissed the action under Code of Civil Procedure (CCP) §§583.410-583.430, the discretionary dismissal statutes. A court may, in its discretion, dismiss an action for delay in prosecution if it has not been brought to t...

Excerpt: ...trial preference is DENIED. The Court finds Plaintiff's Counsel's declaration fails to show Plaintiff's health is such that a preference is necessary to prevent prejudicing Plaintiff's interest in the litigation. According to CCP §36(a), “[a] party to a civil action who is over the age of 70 years may petition the court for a preference, which the court shall grant if the court makes all of the following findings: (1) The party has a substanti...

Excerpt: ...N) is GRANTED. “A motion for judgment on the pleadings performs the same function as a general demurrer, and hence attacks only defects disclosed on the face of the pleadings or by matters that can be judicially noticed. Presentation of extrinsic evidence is therefore not proper on a motion for judgment on the pleadings.” Cloud v. Northrop Grumman Corp. (1998) 67 Cal.App.4th 995, 999. Defendant argues that, under the alleged Option Agreement,...

Excerpt: ...rer is OVERRULED. Defendants to answer in 20 days. In general, affirmative defenses may not be resolved on demurrer unless the defense appears clearly and affirmatively from the face of the complaint. See Asahi Kasei Pharma Corp. v. Actelion Ltd. (2013) 222 Cal.App.4 th 945, 963 (quoting Woods v. Fox Broadcasting Sub., Inc. (2005) 129 Cal.App.4th 344, 351). A “demurrer based on an affirmative defense cannot properly be sustained where the actio...

Excerpt: ...f fails to allege compliance or an excuse from compliance with GC §945.4 as to Defendant LAUSD. Defendant LAUSD's RJN is GRANTED Govt. Code § 945.4 provides: “Except as provided in Sections 946.4 and 946.6, no suit for money or damages may be brought against a public entity on a cause of action for which a claim is required to be presented in accordance with Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 900) and Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 910) o...

Excerpt: ...tortion is GRANTED. Defendant is to submit the proposed order and judgment of dismissal. “A court evaluates an anti-SLAPP motion in two steps. Initially, the moving defendant bears the burden of establishing that the challenged allegations or claims arise from protected activity in which the defendant has engaged. If the defendant carries its burden, the plaintiff must then demonstrate its claims have at least minimal merit. If the plaintiff fa...

Excerpt: ...IES (SET ONE) MOVING PARTY: Plaintiffs Craig Ross and Natalie Operstein RESP. PARTY: Defendant Board of Trustees of California State University TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiffs' Motion for Order Compelling Further Responses to Plaintiff Ross's Form Rog 17.1, Plaintiff Ross's Requests for Admission (Set Two) and Plaintiff's Operstein's Form Interrogatories (Set One) is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART. The Parties' Meet & Confer Effort: Parties met a...

Excerpt: ... costs in connection with this judicial proceeding. The Court's authority to award costs in this proceeding is set forth in CCP §1293.2, which provides “[t]he court shall award costs upon any judicial proceeding under this title as provided in Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 1021) of Title 14 of Part 2 of this code.” Thus, the costs recoverable in this judicial proceeding are delimited under CCP §1021, et seq. In its 2-27-20 memo of cost...

Excerpt: ...dication of the first cause of action for breach of contract/written guarantee is GRANTED. REASONING Plaintiff meets its initial burden. Plaintiff moves for summary adjudication of the 1 st cause of action for breach of contract/written guarantee. The undisputed facts establish that (1) Defendant O'Gara Coach Company LLC entered into a guaranty of the lease between Plaintiff and Santa Monica Powers Sports, LLC (See Defendant's Response to Plainti...

Excerpt: ... Inc. and Claudia Lewis (2) None as of 8-30-20. TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiff's Motion for Attorney's Fees and Court Costs is DENIED. Defendants' Motion to Tax Costs is DENIED. I. Plaintiff's Request for Attorney's Fees is DENIED as untimely. When “prevailing party” status or the “reasonableness” of attorney fees requested must be determined by the trial court, a notice of motion claiming fees for services up to and including rendition of th...

Excerpt: ...L Management, LLC, Jim Investments, LLC and Julian P. Ledesma TENTATIVE RULING Defendants Alexandra Andon, in her capacity as Trustee of The Reevesbury Trust, and Alexander Andon's Demurrer to the first cause of action for Promissory Fraud and seventh cause of action for Intentional Misrepresentation is SUSTAINED WITH 10 DAYS LEAVE TO AMEND. Defendant's demurer to the third cause of action for breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair...

Excerpt: ...ship RESP. PARTY: (1) Defendant Tanz Family Investment Partnership (i.e., petition to vacate) (2) Plaintiff Sherman Oaks Collective Care, Inc. TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiff Sherman Oaks Collective Care, Inc.'s Petition to Confirm Arbitration Award is GRANTED. Defendant Tanz Family Investment Partnership's Petition to Vacate Arbitration Award is DENIED. Petition to Vacate Defendant seeks an order vacating the attorney's fees portion of the arbitratio...

Excerpt: ...d Unico American Corporation's Motion for Summary Judgment or in the alternative, Summary Adjudication is DENIED. Triable issues of fact remain as to whether Plaintiff engaged in protected conduct, whether Defendants terminated her in retaliation for engaging in such conduct and whether Defendants fabricated a pretext to hide the true, illegal reason for her termination. Evidentiary Objections: Plaintiff's objections: Objection 1 sustained; Objec...

Excerpt: ...o Strike Portions of Plaintiff's Second Amended and Supplemental Complaint MOVING PARTY: Defendant, North American Specialty Insurance Company RESP. PARTY: Plaintiff, Maria Isabel Felix TENTATIVE RULING Defendant North America Specialty Insurance Company's Demurrer to the Second Amended Complaint (SAC) is SUSTAINED with 15 days' leave to amend as to the First, Second, Third, Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Causes of Action and OVERRULED as to the Fourt...

Excerpt: ...n 10-2-19 is GRANTED. As the party asserting jurisdiction over LG Chem, Plaintiff is responsible for establishing either general or specific jurisdiction over LG Chem. See Ziller Electronics Lab GmbH v. Sup. Ct. (1988) 206 Cal.App.3d 1222, 1232. Plaintiff does not argue general jurisdiction. Plaintiff asserts specific jurisdiction based on a “stream of commerce theory.” In general, specific jurisdiction requires that “(1) the defendant has ...

Excerpt: ...E RULING Plaintiffs' Motion for Preliminary Injunction is DENIED. “In deciding whether to issue a preliminary injunction, a court must weigh two ‘interrelated' factors: (1) the likelihood that the moving party will ultimately prevail on the merits and (2) the relative interim harm to the parties from issuance or nonissuance of the injunction. [¶] The trial court's determination must be guided by a ‘mix' of the potential-merit and interim-h...

Excerpt: ... Demurrer to First Amended Petition and Complaint [FAPC] is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND as to the first cause of action for petition for writ of mandate and OVERRULED as to all remaining causes of action identified in the notice of demurrer (Slander of Title, Brown Act Claim and Declaratory relief.) Defendant's Motion to Strike is GRANTED as to the following categories of allegations identified in the Notice of Motion: allegations re: Woody'...

Excerpt: ...ry Adjudication of the Nonexistence of a Duty under the 10-18-12 Speakerguy Contract is DENIED. Defendant De Buhr's Motion for Summary Adjudication of the Nonexistence of a Duty under the 10-18-12 Speakerguy Contract is GRANTED. I. Defendants are entitled under CCP §437c(f)(1) to seek adjudication of the existence or nonexistence of a contractual duty to Plaintiff under the Speakerguy Contract. “A party may move for summary adjudication as to�...

Excerpt: ...Roger L. Gordon Exempt Generation-Skipping Trust established under the Hannah Gordon Living Trust; and Gail R. Gordon, an individual and co-Trustee of the Hannah Gordon Living Trust and as the Trustee of the Gail Gordon Exempt Generation-Skipping Trust established under the Hanna Gordon Living Trust TENTATIVE RULING Defendants' Demurrer to the 7th cause of action for Appointment of Receiver the is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND. The Demurrers t...

Excerpt: ...rate Valencia, LLC TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment is DENIED. Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Adjudication is DENIED. I. 1st cause of action for breach of contract—DENY “A plaintiff…has met his or her burden of showing that there is no defense to a cause of action if that party has proved each element of the cause of action entitling the party to judgment on the cause of action. Once the plaintiff…has met that burd...

Excerpt: ... Civil Procedure (CCP) §1094.5. A respondent may demur to a petition for writ relief. See generally Woods v. Superior Court (1981) 28 Cal.3d 668, 673 (demurrer to petition for writ of administrative mandamus properly overruled where petitioner sought review of adjudicatory decision of the Department of Social Services which was alleged to be invalid because it was based on an invalid regulation). “All that is required is that plaintiff state f...

Excerpt: ...VE RULING Defendants Yao's Motion for Release of Property from Lien and to Claim Costs is GRANTED. Defendants did not cite any procedural authority allowing for the requested relief, i.e. release of the mechanic's lien based on Plaintiff's failure to record the lien within 90 days after completion of the work per Civil Code §8412. While Civil Code §8412 provides Defendants with an affirmative defense to the 3rd c/a for foreclosure of mechanic's...

Excerpt: ...ITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND as to the 2nd cause of action for Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress and the 3rd cause of action for Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress. 1st cause of action for breach of Hold Harmless Agreement—OVERRULE “A general demurrer based on the statute of limitations is only permissible where the dates alleged in the complaint show that the action is barred by the statute of limitations. The running of the stat...

Excerpt: ...TY: Plaintiff Arthur Gillard TENTATIVE RULING Defendants' Motion for an Order Compelling Arbitration and Staying Litigation is GRANTED. Defendant's evidentiary objections to the declarations of Breana Villazana and Colin S. Welsh and Arthur Gillard are overruled. “On petition of a party to an arbitration agreement alleging the existence of a written agreement to arbitrate a controversy and that a party to the agreement refuses to arbitrate that...

Excerpt: ...GRANTED. Plaintiff's UD action is based on Plaintiff's right to owner occupancy of a rent controlled unit under Santa Monica Rent Control Charter Amendment Section 1806 (a)(8)(v11). See Complaint, Attachment 15. Defendant Manning argues the subject unit cannot be owner occupied as an issue of law based on the Court's 4-7-20 Tentative and Proposed Statement of Decision. See Defendant's RJN, Ex. 2, 10:1-13, 11:1-7, 11:24-26. The Court found in that...

Excerpt: ...l reasonable attorneys would agree that it was totally and completely without merit, nor is there any evidence that it was brought solely for purposes of delay. I. Applicable Law If the court finds a special motion to strike is “frivolous or is solely intended to cause unnecessary delay,” it is required to award costs and reasonable attorney fees “pursuant to Section 128.5” to a “plaintiff prevailing on the motion.” CCP § 425.16(c). ...

Excerpt: ...ffer, MD (7) Defendant Bruce B. McLucas, MD RESP. PARTY: (1)-(7) Plaintiff Nailah Smith TENTATIVE RULING Defendant Kalatzis' Demurrer to the 1st cause of action for IIED, 2nd cause of action for battery, 5th cause of action for concealment and 6th cause of action for breach of fiduciary duty is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND. Defendant Lang's Demurrer to the 1st cause of action for IIED, 5th cause of action for concealment and 6th cause of acti...

Excerpt: ...LC, San Diego Ambulatory Surgery Center, LLC, Cindy Omidi, Julian Omidi, Michael Omidi, Bakersfield Surgery Center, LLC, Beverly Hills Surgery Center, LLC, East Bay Ambulatory Surgery Center, LLC, Independent Medical Services, Inc., Palmdale Ambulatory Surgery Center, LLC, San Joaquin Valley Surgery Center, LLC and Valencia Ambulatory Surgery Center, LLC (2) Plaintiff Golden State Practice Management, LLC. TENTATIVE RULING Defendants' Demurrer to...

Excerpt: ...reet & Co. Inc.'s Motion to Compel Production of Business Records from Third Party Stoneview Corporation is GRANTED. Stone view is ordered to serve further responses, without objections, except properly asserted objections based on the attorney client privilege and attorney work product privilege. In addition, Stoneview Corporations shall serve a new privilege log with the specificity required as addressed below. Finally, Stoneview shall produce ...

Excerpt: ...ief pursuant to Health & Safety Code §17980.7 is DENIED. I. Applicable Law for Appointment of Receiver under H&SC §17980.7(c) “If a building is…maintained in violation of any provision of, or in violation of any order or notice that gives a reasonable time to correct that violation issued by an enforcement agency pursuant to this part, the building standards published in the California Building Standards Code, or other rules and regulations...

Excerpt: ...in-Intervention City National Bank (3) Defendant Elliot Lander, as Trustee of the Stuart Rubin Children's Trust TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiff U.S. Real Estate Credit Holdings' Motion for Preliminary Injunction is DENIED. Plaintiff fails to demonstrate (1) irreparable harm or (2) the likelihood of prevailing on the merits of Plaintiff's claims. Plaintiff-in-Intervention Stiffelman's request for joinder is GRANTED. The RJN is GRANTED. I. Applicable La...

Excerpt: ...ly RESP. PARTY: (1) Defendant Patrick Kealy (by way of the Motion to Contest Good Faith Settlement) (2) Defendants Hua Gallai LLP, Nicholas T. Hua and Giacomo Gallai (by way of opposition filed on 6-30-20) TENTATIVE RULING Defendants Hua Gallai LLP, Nicholas Hua and Giacomo Gallai's Application for Determination of Good Faith Settlement and Request for Judicial Notice are GRANTED. Defendant Patrick Kealy's Motion to Contest Good Faith Settlement ...

Excerpt: ...NETARY SANCTIONS AGAINST ELIZABETH STEINLAUF AND HER COUNSEL (1) MOTION TO COMPEL DEFENDANT/X-COMPLAINANT PETER STEINLAUF TO PROVIDE CODE COMPLIANT RESPONSES TO DEMAND FOR PRODUCTION, INSPECTION AND COPYING OF DOCUMENTS; TO PRODUCE RESPONSIVE DOCUMENTS, AND FOR AN AWARD OF MONETARY SANCTIONS AGAINST PETER STEINLAUF AND HER COUNSEL (3) MOTION TO COMPEL DEFENDANT/X-COMPLAINANT STEINLAUF 1982 TRUST DATED JUNE 2, 1982 TO PROVIDE CODE COMPLIANT RESPON...

Excerpt: ... Summary Adjudication of the 2nd cause of action for defamation and punitive damages in the Third Amended Cross-complaint of Levy, United Consortium, Inc. and Levy Nutrition, Inc. is DENIED. Cross-Defendants move for summary adjudication of the 2nd cause of action based on three affirmative defenses: (1) truth, (2) CC §47(b)(litigation privilege) and (3) CC §47(c)(qualified communication privilege.) Cross-Defendants also move for summary adjudi...

Excerpt: ...h America, Inc. d/b/a Western Exterminator Company (“Rentokil”)'s Demurrer is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND as to the 1st cause of action for battery, the 3rd cause of action for IIED, the 4th cause of action for breach of the implied warranty of habitability, the 5th cause of action for breach of the covenant of quiet enjoyment, the 6th cause of action under CC §1942.4 and the 8th cause of action for public nuisance. The Demurrer to the ...

Excerpt: ...state Properties and Brian Stace's Demurrer to the FAXC is : (1) SUSTAINED W/O LEAVE TO AMEND as to the 7th c/a for violation of Bus> & Prof. code 17200, (2) OVERRULED as to the accounting claim, and (3) SUSTAINED W/10 DAYS LEAVE TO AMEND as to the remaining claims. X-Defendants' Motion to Strike is MOOT. I. All causes of action improperly incorporate X-Defendants' filing of the underlying lawsuit as grounds for liability. Demurrer is properly su...

Excerpt: ...ifying a cause of action as an ‘intentional tort' as opposed to ‘negligence' does not itself remove the claim from the requirements of section 425.13(a). The allegations that identify the nature and cause of a plaintiff's injury must be examined to determine whether each is directly related to the manner in which professional services were provided…And, contrary to plaintiffs' argument, section 425.13(a) applies regardless of whether the co...

Excerpt: ...RULING Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment, or in the alternative Summary Adjudication, is DENIED. I. Triable issues of fact remain as to Plaintiff's design defect claim “Design defect” strict liability may be established under either of two alternative tests, commonly known as the “consumer expectation” and “risk-benefit” tests. See Kim v. Toyota Motor Corp. (2018) 6 Cal.5th 21, 30; Barker v. Lull Engineering Co., Inc. (1978) 20 ...

Excerpt: ...o answer in 10 days. Defendant's Request for Judicial Notice is GRANTED. I. Defendant's Demurrer based on res judicata is OVERRULED A. The NCB FAXC and USB Federal Action did not involve the same “causes of action” alleged in this action “California adheres to a ‘primary rights' theory in determining whether the claims or causes of action are the same. The significant factor is whether the claim or cause of action is for invasion of a sin...

Excerpt: ...CSU TENTATIVE RULING Plaintiffs' Demurrer to Defendant's First Amended Answer is OVERRULED and the MTS is GRANTED as to the 8 th Affirmative Defense for Fees and DENIED as to all remaining defenses. Plaintiff Ross also filed an MJP to the 3 rd, 4 th, 6 th, 9 th through 18 th, 20 th, 22 nd and 25 th affirmative defenses alleged in the FAA. An MJP serves the exact same function as a demurrer based on the answer's failure to state facts to constitut...

Excerpt: ...d affirmatively barred by statute of limitations Statute of limitations is not an appropriate ground to sustain a demurrer unless the complaint allegations clearly and affirmatively establish that the action is time barred. See Roman v. County of Los Angeles (2000) 85 Cal.App.4th 316, 324-325. “This will not be the case unless the complaint alleges every fact which the defendant would be required to prove if he were to plead the bar of the appl...