Excerpt: ...e and serve opposition to plaintiff's Request for Pretrial Discovery Conference. Plaintiff had filed her request with the court on September 27, 2022, and served it on defendant by email that same day. Thus, per The Fresno Superior Court Local Rules, rule 2.1.17A.2, defendant had until Tuesday, October 4, 2022 (five court days) to file and serve its opposition. No opposition was filed, and on October 11, 2022, the court issued an order noting def...

Excerpt: ... will run from service of the order by the clerk. All new allegations shall be in boldface type. Explanation: First Cause of Action — Disability Discrimination Defendants attack this cause of action on the ground that that plaintiff does not allege that she suffered from a qualifying disability — the hand injury does not constitute a qualifying disability. Specifically, plaintiff alleges that she suffered a "hand injury" while on the job, and...

Excerpt: ...ng party, it is error to refuse permission to amend and where the refusal also results in a party being deprived of the right to assert a meritorious cause of action or a meritorious defense, is not only error but an abuse of discretion." (Morgan v. Superior Court (1959) 172 Cal.App.2d 527, 530.) California Rules of Court, Rule 3.1324 provides that a motion to amend must: (1) include a copy of the proposed amendment, (2) state what allegations in...

Excerpt: ...stigation reports created by the defendant or its risk management department with the dominant purpose of preparing for anticipated litigation are subject to the attorney-client privilege. "Where, as here, a corporate employer requires that employees make a report, the privilege of that report is determined by the employer's purpose in requiring the report. When the corporate employer has more than one purpose in requiring the report, the dominan...

Excerpt: ...ial Notice All evidentiary objections to the Declaration of Leigh Ann Ruijters are sustained based on lack of foundation to support personal knowledge of the declarant. Code of Civil Procedure section 2009 generally authorizes the use of affidavits and declarations in motion proceedings, creating an exception to the hearsay rule and rendering them potentially admissible as evidence. However, declarations must still be based on personal knowledge ...

Excerpt: ...order determining faith settlement. To find that the settlement Plaintiffs and Cirks Construction, Inc. is in faith. To deny without prejudice, the motions for order determining good faith settlement of Lazy Dog Restaurants, LLC, LDR Holdings, LLC, Villagio Shopping Center, LLC, and Manco Abbott, Inc. Explanation: "Any party to an action in which it is alleged that two or more parties are joint tortfeasors or co-obligors on a contract debt shall ...

Excerpt: ...d, unless they, or some note or memorandum thereof, are in writing and subscribed by the party to be charged or by the party's agent: (1) An agreement that by its terms is not to be performed within a year from the making thereof." (Civ. Code, S 1524, subd. (a)(l).) Thus, "[aln oral agreement that by its terms is not to be performed within a year from the making thereof is invalid." (Gressley v. Williams (1961) 193 Cal.App.2d 636, 640, internal c...

Excerpt: ...he minute order by the clerk. Explanation: On December 16, 2021, this court sustained defendant's demurrer to plaintiff's original complaint, with leave to amend, except that leave to amend was not granted to state a petition for a writ of mandate. The court found that, among other things, the original complaint failed to state facts to support the purported causes of action for workplace discrimination and retaliation. On December 27, 2021, plai...

Excerpt: ...sel of record are reminded that "[al person permitted to appear as counsel pro hac vice under [California Rules of Court, rule 9.40] is subject to the jurisdiction of the courts of this state with respect to the law of this state governing the conduct of attorneys to the same extent as a licensee of the State Bar of California. The counsel pro hac vice must familiarize himself or herself and comply with the standards of professional conduct requi...

Excerpt: ...nitive damages allegations against defendants pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 425.13. Code of Civil Procedure section 425.13, subdivision (a), prov-des, In any action for damages arising out of the professional negligence of a health care provider, no claim for punitive damages shall be included in a complaint or other pleading unless the court enters an order allowing an amended pleading that includes a claim for punitive damages to ...

Excerpt: ...proval of the proposed settlement. An agreement of the parties is not sufficient to establish a class for settlement purposes. There must be an independent assessment by a neutral court of evidence showing that a class action is pro#r. (Luckey v. Superior Court (2014) 228 Cal. App. 4th 81 (rev. denied); see also Newberg, Newberg on Class Actions (T. R. Westlaw, 2017) Section 7:3: "The parties' representation of an uncontested motion for class cer...

Excerpt: ...of express and implied warrantes concerning this vehicle underthe Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act (Civ. Code, SS 1790, et seq.). Nissan moves to compel plaintiff to arbitrate these claims based on the Retail Installment Sales Contract ("RISC") she signed when she purchased the subject vehicle. Evidentary Objections Plaintiff's evidentiary objections are overruled. As defendant correctly argues on reply, the party moving to compel arbitration d...

Excerpt: ... order by the clerk, the DPSS shall produce all documents responsive to the subpoena served on August 29, 2022, with social security numbers and third party identities redacted. To deny the motion to compel plaintiff to sign an authorization for the release of records. To deny all requests for sanctions. Explanation: Motion to Compel DPSS to Comply with Subpoena Defendant issued a subpoena for plaintiff's employment and medical records from the A...

Excerpt: ...d from these records, are confidential and shall not be disclosed in any criminal or civil proceeding except by discovery pursuant to Sections 1043 and 1045 of the Evidence Code." Evidence Code secton 1043 requires a noticed motion which identifies the records sought, and "affidavits showing good cause for the discovery or disclosure sought, setting forth the materiality thereof to the subject matter involved in the pending litigation and stating...

Excerpt: ...h a class for settlement purposes. There must be an independent assessment by a neutral court of evidence showing that a class action is proper. (Luckey v. Superior Court (2014) 228 Cal.App.4th 81 (rev. denied); see also Newberg, Newberg on Class Actions (T.R. Westlaw, 2017) Section 7:3: "The parties' representation of an uncontested motion for class certification does not relieve the Court of the duty of determining whether certification is appr...

Excerpt: ... replacement of the vehicle or reimbursement of the purchase price paid for the vehicle, specifically paragraph 34 and the prayer on page 10, paragraph A, are striken without leave to amend. The motion to strike the prayers for attorneys' fees and costs is denied. Explanation: Demurrer Toyota demurs to the second cause of achon for violation of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act ("MMWA") on the grounds that the First Amended Complaint ("FAC") fails t...

Excerpt: ...d cause of action, with leave to amend, as directed in the explanation below. Plaintiff is granted 10 days' leave to file the First Amended Complaint, which will run from service by the clerk of the minute order. New allegations/language must be set in boldface type. Explanation: Quiet Title Plaintiff concedes that there is no cause of action stated in the complaint for quiet title. Thus, all defendants are demurring to is surplusage in the compl...

Excerpt: ...cton. There, she was placed on a gurney and was given an injection that she was told would make her drowsy. While still on the gurney, plaintiff was moved to a different hall way and was placed under the care of a male nurse, the moving defendant Freddie Rodriguez ("defendant"). Plaintiff alleges that defendant said he would take care of her and "help her with whatever she needed while addressing her in an overly friendly manner." (TAC, '1 5.) Pl...

Excerpt: ...before May 9, 2023, plaintiff must file supplemental declarations correcting the problems noted below. Explanation: There are numerous technical problems with this motion and supporting papers, which prevent the court from considering the merits. First, both the Settlement Agreement (Bolce Dec„ Exhibit A) and the "Notice of Class Action Settlement" (ld., Exhibit 8) are missing pages, and there are no signatures showing on the Settlement Agreeme...

Excerpt: ...ased risk that the named plaintiffs and class counsel will breach the fiduciary obligations they owe to the absent class As a result, such agreements must withstand an even higher level of scrutiny for evidence of collusion or other conflicts of interest than is ordinarily required under Rule 23(e) before securing the court's approval as fair." (Koby v. ARS National Services, Inc. (9th Cir. 2017) 846 F. 3d 1071, 1079.) "[l]n the final analysis it...

Excerpt: ...uest for treble damages and attorney's fees pursuant to Penal Code section 495. (Cal. Rules of Court, Rules 3.1WJ, subd. (a)(l); Kim v. Westmoore Partners, Inc. (2011) 201 Cal.App.4th 257, 288.) [Although no evidence relating to liability is necessary for a prove-up hearing, evidence establishing a prima facie case for damages is required.] By defaulting, cross-defendant admits liability for the debt or obligation on all well pled causes of actio...

Excerpt: ..., sixth and eighth causes of action. To overrule the demurrer for uncertainty. (Code Civ. Proc. S 430.10, (f).) To deny the motion to strike the allegations for punitive damages in paragraphs 79 and 96. The moton to strike paragraph 85 from the second cause of action is moot in light of the ruling sustaining the demurrer to the second cause of action. Plaintiff may file and serve a Second Amended Complaint. Such must be done within 10 days of the...

Excerpt: ...l Prmædure section 473, subdivision (b), prov-des for discretionary relief from a default or default judgment that has been entered due to mistake, surprise, inadvertence, or excusable neglect. Civ. Proc. S 473, subd. The party seeking relief must bring his or her moton within a reasonable time, not to exceed six months from the date of entry of the default or default judgment. (Ibid.) "Where the mistake is excusable and the party seeking relief...

Excerpt: ...), and Request for Production of Documents (Set One). Plaintiff Novalee Solis is ordered to serve verified responses, without objections, to defendant within 30 days of service of the minute order by the clerk. To grant defendant Walmart, Inc.'s request to deem Requests for Admissions admitted. The truth of the matters specified in the Requests for Admissions, Set One, are to be deemed admitted unless plaintiff Novalee Solis serves, before the he...

Excerpt: ...f's moton to compel further responses to request number 30. Defendant Kings Canpn Unified School District ("the District") shall provide further responses and produce all relevant documents in substantial compliance with Code of Civil Procedure sections 2031.210, 2031.220 and 2031.240, within 30 days of service of the order by the clerk. Explanation: Under Code of Civil Procedure, section 2025.450, subdivision (a), If, after service of a depositi...