Excerpt: ... notify th e Court and opposing counsel by 4:00 p.m. on the date of this posting, April 24. In short, the Court now rules: • Although there is a question about the report being read by Judge Campins, there is no broader prohibition on the Court generally (a differen t Judge) seeing and reviewing the report. • The District Attorney's office, however, may not see the report, at least not at this point. • The Court can and should review the re...

Excerpt: ...emurrer is otherwise overruled. The Dis trict shall file and serve its answer by May 9, 2024. In addition, as discussed below, the matter is set for June 5, 2024 at 8:30 a.m. (the next CMC date) for an order to show cause why the complaint should not be dismissed for the inappropriate attempted representation of a trust by a non-attorney. Background and Allegations Plaintiff is one of the trustees of the Jordan Family Trust, which owns real prop...

Excerpt: ... locations . Plaintiff is a former nonexempt employee of defendants, though her job description and employment dates are not provided. The original complaint was filed on March 3, 2021. Several amendments were made, one of which (in September 2022) added PAGA claims. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $625,000. The class representative payment SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICI...

Excerpt: ...laintiff als o moves for approval of his attorney's fees, litigation costs, administration costs, and representative payments. The motion is granted. A. Background of the Case and Terms of Settlement This a PAGA case (not a class action), alleging violations of the Lab or Code. The allegations have been revised by amendments, but as framed in the second amended complaint they center principally on untimely payment of wages. This case was first �...

Excerpt: ... granted, the administrator has mailed notices to 120 class members. No packets were returned by the post office, and there are thus no nondeliverable notices. One additional person came forward and, after inquiry, was determined to be a class member as well. No o bjections or requests to opt out have been received. The motions are granted. E. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant is in the home warranty business. Plaintiff worked there as a ...

Excerpt: ...l of th e party's intention to contest, specifying the issues to be contested. As stated in last week's tentative ruling, however, even if there is no contest, counsel are to appear (Zoom okay) to discuss scheduling and the future course of this case. The Court va cated last Friday's scheduled Issue Conference/Mandatory Settlement Conference in light of its not having decided this motion yet. Moreover, the Court predicted last week that the prese...

Excerpt: ...E: 04/11/ 2024 23 A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant is in the business of providing extended vehicle service programs and ancillary finance and insurance products. This class -action case arises from its alleged former practice of recording consumer pho ne calls, made on cellular or wireless phones, without proper consent or notification. Plaintiff made two such calls in October and November 2022. The original complaint was filed on...

Excerpt: ...May 10 in which to file and serve a second amended complaint, if they choose to. In the event that they elect not to amend, defendants Puri and Compass are given to June 7 in which to answer the surviving contract count of the complaint. (If there is no amendment there will remain no claim pending against defendant Mehringer. There will also remain no live claim being asserted by plaintiff Kandola.) The Court further observes that although it is...

Excerpt: ...e defenses. For the following reasons, Plaintiff's Demurrer to Defendants First, Second, Ninth, Tenth, Twelfth, Thirteenth, and Fourteenth Affirmative Defense is overruled, and Plaintiff's Demurrer to Defendant's Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Eleventh and Fifteenth Affirmative Defense is sustained, with leave to amend as to all but the fifteenth affirmative defense. Legal Standard Code of Civil Procedure § 430.20(a) provides for...

Excerpt: ...or concer ts and similar events. Plaintiffs state that they were employed in non -exempt positions, though their job descriptions and employment dates are not provided. Plaintiff King filed her original complaint as a PAGA case on March 7,2023. She filed a parallel c lass action on May 15, 2023. The class action was amended in December to combine the two cases and to add plaintiff Hill. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $80...

Excerpt: ...ote") secured by a deed of trust on Plaintiffs' single - family residence located at 1452 Club View Drive in El Cerrito. (First Amended Complaint (with errata) ("FAC") ¶¶ 1, 4, 12 -15; P. Pan Decl. Exh. C [deed of trust].) Defendants Peter Pan and Jenny Pan (the "Pans" fo r convenience) are the lenders under the Note. On March 22, 2022, the Pans issued a Notice Pursuant to California Civil Code § 2966 ("Section 2966...

Excerpt: ...parties have made , given that there have been both multiple “settlement agreements” entered into since the original one, and multiple recitations to the Court of unresolved issues requiring further negotiation and agreement. The motion before the Court purports to say that the settlement to be enforced is the one that was “agreed to at the Mediation conducted in this matter on October 15, 1998 in front of Mediator Hon. Mark Eaton”. That ...

Excerpt: ..., administr ation costs, and representative payment. The motion is granted. A. Background of the Case and Terms of Settlement The total settlement payment is $275,000. Out of this is to come attorney's fees of $91,667 (one -third of the recovery); $22,305 in litigation costs, and $3,950 in costs to the settlement Administrator. The This a PAGA case (not a class action), alleging a variety of violations of the Labor Code concerning failure to prov...

Excerpt: ...age in viol ation of Labor Code § 1194(a), and the fourth cause of action for failure to provide timely paystubs in violation of Labor Code § 226(e). Plaintiff's MSA is granted as to the fourth cause of action. As to the first cause of action, the motion is continued to April 11, 2024 at 9:00 a.m. for consideration of a supplemental and corrective submission by plaintiff as to the damages calculations. Request for Judicial Notice In support of...

Excerpt: ...oyed ther e as nurses – two of them from 2016 to 2020, though the third plaintiff's dates are not provided. The original complaint was filed on October 1, 2021 as a class action. Plaintiff Hudson separately filed a PAGA action on the previous day. The parties stipul ated to consolidate the actions. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $3,000,000. The class representative payments to the plaintiffs would be $10,000 each. Atto...

Excerpt: ...eged breach of confidential data. The proposed settlement terms involve an array of offered curative steps rather than the more typical cash payments. And, refreshingly, the items usually to be deducted from the gross settlement amount (such as attorney's fees, administrative costs, and representative payments) are being funded directly by the defendant outside of the settlement fund. A. Background , Subject Matter, and Course of Proceedings Cli...

Excerpt: ...tions. F or that reason the Court does not view this as cause for recusal. Plaintiff Nicole Paris moves for preliminary approval of her class action and PAGA settlement with defendant Allergy & Asthma Medical Group of the Bay Area, Inc.. The motion is granted. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant is a medical group treating patients in the specialty of allergies. Plaintiff was employed as a non -exempt employee, though her dates of employ...

Excerpt: ...remaining counts. Plaintiff alleges that she was rear -ended in a traffic accident by defendant Renee Thomas. Ms. Thomas said she was calling the Brentwood police, but the officer who actually showed up was a CHP officer who falsely identified himself as Officer Spe ars. Plaintiff alleges that in fact “Officer Spears” was Officer Donnie Thomas, Renee Thomas's husband. Officer Thomas engaged in various investigative steps such as taking plain...

Excerpt: ...nd amended cros s-complaint by April 19, 2024. This is a lawsuit between two former cohabitants, previously involved romantically and otherwise with each other; the female plaintiff is substantially younger than the male defendant. The male party has filed a first amende d cross-complaint against the female. This is her demurrer to his FAXC. The Court had previously sustained a demurrer to the original cross -complaint. The grounds for that rul...

Excerpt: ...e, but in which Judge Devine granted defendant's motion to designate plaintiff as a vexatious litigant. The present suit is not technically barred by that prefiling- screening order due to the overlapping timing; this suit was filed while the vexatious -litigant moti on was pending, but before it was granted. Nevertheless, this suit appears clearly to constitute a continuation of the same abusive litigation misconduct that caused Judge Devine t...

Excerpt: ...mended complaint (FAC), namely count 3 (covenant of quiet enjoyment), count 4 (intentional infliction of emotional distress), and count 6 (covenant of good faith and fair dealing). The demurrer is sustained without leave to amend. FPI is given 21 days in which to a nswer the remaining causes of action against it. If plaintiff contests this tentative ruling to seek leave to amend, he should attend the hearing prepared to discuss in detail what am...

Excerpt: ...violation of the California family rights act; (7) failure to provide meal & rest periods; (8) failure to provide overtime wages; (9) unfair business practices; (10) retaliation and wrongful termination in violation of public policy; and (11) intentional infliction of emotional distress. Defendant demurs to Plaintiff's causes of action for (1) disability harassment and (11) intentional infliction of emotional distress pursuant to Code of Civil ...

Excerpt: ... resolved in t heir favor, it was the operative catalyst in securing the relief petitioners sought, namely the termination of the Tree Removal Agreement (TRA) between Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) and the City of Lafayette. Although petitioners' present motion does not limit itself to seeking an award against only PG&E (rather than the City), only PG&E has filed an opposition. The Court would have welcomed the City's input on the issu...

Excerpt: ... 15, 2023 as a class action. PAGA claims were added by amendment on June 2. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $220,000. The class representative payment to the plaintiff would be $7,000. Attorney's fees would be $73,333 (one -third of the settlement). Litigation costs would not exceed $15,000. The settlement administrator's costs are estimated at $8,000. PAGA penalties would be $30,000, resulting in a payment of $22,500 to th...

Excerpt: ...y, Western Surety Company for (1) breach of contract, (2) intentional misrepresentation, (3) false promise, (4) negligent misrepresentation, (5) accounting and refund, and (6) enforcement of contractor's license bond. Defendants Red Door, Zhobin Safdari, and Cynthia Safdari move to compel arbitration of Plaintiffs' claims and stay the action pending arbitration. Plaintiffs oppose the motion. For the following reasons, the motion is granted. Reque...

Excerpt: ... motion, though without separate argument or exposition. Plaintiff's opposition raises no points or arguments that would apply only to Amazon, nor does it make any arguments (aside from the filing date) as to why a ruling in EVLO's favor should not also apply to Am azon. Accordingly, the motion is granted for Amazon as well. Factual Background EVLO was a delivery service based in San Jose that began doing business on or about August 17, 2018, an...

Excerpt: ...reekside") al leges it is the owner of an apartment complex in El Cerrito known as Creekside Walk Apartments (the "Project"). (Def. Sep. Stmt. ("SS") of Undisputed Material Facts ("UMFs") No. 2.) Creekside has filed two lawsuits concerning alleged construction defects a t the Project, one against the general contractor (which the parties and the SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT...

Excerpt: ...rom a Go ogle search it appears that it operates a restaurant in Brentwood. Plaintiff alleges that she worked at defendant in a non- exempt hourly job, though her job duties and dates of employment are not identified. The original complaint was filed on May 15, 2023 as a class action. There are no PAGA claims and the case is being settled on a class action basis. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $172,500. The class represe...

Excerpt: ...iff worke d for defendant as a customer service representative between April and November 2019. The original complaint was filed on March 26, 2021 as a class action. It was amended to add a PAGA claim, and further amended again. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $910,000. The class representative payment to the plaintiff would be $7,500. Attorney's fees would be $303,333 (one -third of the settlement). Litigation costs would...

Excerpt: ..., however: T he Court believes that the analysis provided below should assist the parties in resolving most if not all of the open points of debate, and should provide a road map for how the sides can go about getting to a bottom -line result as to fees. Accordingly, the parties are SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 02/29/2024 39 directed to engage in subst...

Excerpt: ...ney's fe es, litigation costs, administration costs, and representative payment. The motion is granted with a modification. A. Background of the Case and Terms of Settlement This a PAGA case (not a class action), alleging a variety of violations of the Labor Code c oncerning failure to provide rest and meal breaks, failure to pay minimum wages and overtime, and cascading derivative violations. In particular, plaintiff asserts alleged violations ...

Excerpt: ...d file an amend ed cross-complaint. If they decline to do so, Cross -Defendants' time to answer the surviving counts will run from then. Judicial Notice Cross- Defendants request Judicial Notice of a Lease and Lease Amendment between Cross -Defendant 1403 Locust Street LLC a nd Cross-Complainants Taleb and Abughaban. The lease agreements are not attached to the cross -complaint but they are directly referred to in it, and are the basis for two o...

Excerpt: ...igence, int entional misrepresentation, and negligent misrepresentation. Defendants Shapell Industries and Toll Brothers move to compel arbitration of Plaintiff's claims and stay the action pending arbitration. Plaintiff opposes the motion. For the following reasons, the motion is granted. Request for Judicial Notice Defendants' unopposed request for judicial notice is granted. (Evid. Code §§ 452, 453.) Analysis Legal Standard on Motions to Com...

Excerpt: ...levant time s” as an hourly-paid or nonSUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 02/29/2024 22 exempt employee. While Defendant is a Utah limited liability company, Plaintiff worked for Defendant in California. In May 2022, Defendant required all new employees to agree to the terms of a 25 -page document containing various policies and agreements titled the “Ap...

Excerpt: ...ns alleging various v iolations of the Labor Code. This case, No. C23 -02498, is filed as a class action. The other, No. C23 - 03184, is filed as a PAGA -only case, but asserts essentially the same set of violations of the law. Although the cases would call for different treatment if AAA's motion to compel arbitration were to be granted, the cases raise essentially the same issues. Defendant's motion is denied. A court must order arbitration if...

Excerpt: ...nt City's certification of the P lan Orinda Final Environmental Impact Report/Responses to Comments on the Draft EIR ("FEIR") in connection with the approval of zoning modifications and general plan amendments (the "Project" or "Plan Orinda") approved on January 31, 2023. (Administrative Record ("AR") 1-116.) OSEE contends the City failed to comply with the California Environmental Quality Act, Public Resources C...

Excerpt: ... governing these employment relationships at the time of the asserted claims. Plaintiff thereafter filed a claim in arbitration with the American Arbitration Association (AAA). Defendant has refused to participate in that arbitration proceeding, to respond to the arbitra tion claim, or to pay AAAA's fees. Hence, plaintiff has filed the present motion to vacate the Court's prior order compelling arbitration, asking instead that this case proceed...

Excerpt: ...s member s. None of the packets was returned as undeliverable. No objections or requests to opt out have been received. The motion is granted. A. Background and Settlement Terms The pleadings do not identify what business defendant is in, but from its website it is apparently in the business of locating buried utility lines for construction. The complaint alleges that plaintiff was employed at defendant during the relevant period, though it does ...

Excerpt: ...P ruling tha t denied defendant's anti -SLAPP motion in part. Any renewal or amendment of the motion will be deemed timely by relation back to this motion. This case arises from a dispute between plaintiff SMP Construction and defendant Donna Holsten. SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 02/22/2024 22 Holsten hired SMP to do some foundation work on her home. A...

Excerpt: ...ey do not do so, Mitchell is given a further 28 days after that in which to answer the remaining counts of the cross -complaint. Background and the Pleadings This case arises from the buyout of plaintiff Mitchell's majority ownership in SPC, a painting contracting busine ss. SPC was founded by Mitchell and run by him until 2019. It encountered a number of business difficulties, including incurring substantial losses; being subject to an audit con...

Excerpt: ...h, the demurrer by Budde and Ross to the first and second causes of action is sustained without leave to amend. If plaintiff contests the tentative to seek leave to amend, he should come to the hearing prepared to discuss in detail what he has in mind and how it will be sufficient. Budde does not demur to the third cause of action for negligence, which is asserted only against Ross. To the extent that Ross's cursory filing can be taken as demur...

Excerpt: ...s denied as to the first and eleventh causes of action. If plaintiff contests this tentative to seek leave to amend those counts, he should come to the hearing prepared to discuss in detail how he proposes to amend, and how that will suffice. Because this is the firs t challenge to the complaint, plaintiff is given leave to amend as to all remaining causes of action. Plaintiff shall file and serve any amended complaint by March 21, 2024. Shoul...

Excerpt: ...as clean ers in 2020 and 2021. The case's procedural history is a little complicated. The original complaint was filed by plaintiff Grande on November 12, 2021 as a class action. PAGA claims were added by amendment in January 2022. However, upon presentation to pla intiff of an arbitration provision, plaintiff dismissed her class and individual claims, narrowing the case to a representative PAGA claim, and the parties stipulated to stay the case...

Excerpt: ...Mirda (2007 ) 147 Cal.App.4th 740, 747.) In a demurrer proceeding, the defects must be apparent on the face of the pleading or via proper judicial notice. (Donabedian v. Mercury Ins. Co. (2004) 116 Cal.App.4th 968, 994.) "A demurrer tests the pleading alone, and not o n the evidence or facts alleged." (E -Fab, Inc. v. Accountants, Inc. Servs. (2007) 153 Cal.App.4th 1308, 1315.) Accordingly, the court assumes the truth of the complaint'...

Excerpt: ...ligence. Defendants move on the grounds that (1) Defendants owed plainti
¯ no duty of care and were not negligent; (2) Defendants had no actual or constructive notice of an unreasonably dangerous condition; and (3) Defendants' acts or omissions did not cause or contribute to Plainti
¯'s injuries. For the following reasons, Defendants' Motion is denied. Brief Factual Background It is undisputed that on the evening of February 4, 2018, Plainti
¯...

Excerpt: ...pproval was granted, the administrator has mailed notices to 1160 class members. 42 packets were returned by the post o
¯ice. Follow up resulted in 35 new addresses, leaving 7 nondeliverable. No objections have been received, and only one request or exclusion. The motions are granted. A. Background and Settlement Terms Deendant is a country club. Plainti
¯ was employed there as a banquet server rom July 2019 to March 2020. The original compl...

Excerpt: ...for breach of the peace. Commercial Code § 9609 provides that “after default, a secured party may … take possession of the collateral … without judicial process, if it proceeds without breach of the peace.” Plainti
¯ does not allege that Location ever did actually repossess his vehicle. He alleges that Location made an initial, but unsuccessful, attempt to do so on May 22, 2020. SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ...

Excerpt: ... the Complaint Defendants Claire and David Aschwanden and plainti
¯s Cathleen and Wilrolan Ravelo were friends for a number of years David and Wilrolan served in the military together, then both worked on the San Francisco Police Department SWAT team since approximately 2017 (SSUMF 31) For clarity, and meaning no disrespect, the discussion will use Þrst names where necessary to distinguish the parties The Aschwandens invited the Ravelos to ...

Excerpt: ...perpetrator. He has sued the person who assaulted him (named as John Doe), the landlord of the apartment complex, and DoorDash. DoorDash has moved for an order compelling plainti
¯ to arbitrate his claims against DoorDash and staying the remainder of the action pending the arbitration. Procedures for Enforcement of Arbitration Agreement Whether the arbitration agreement is governed by the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. §§ 1 et seq., or by t...

Excerpt: ... Þrst sets of form interrogatories to each plainti
¯, served on or about April 26, 2023; and (2) defendant's Þrst sets of requests for production of documents to each plainti
¯, served on or about May 7, 2023. Within ten days thereafter, plainti
¯s are ordered to produce all responsive documents, without objections. These discovery requests were served last April and May. Purported responses were served last August. The responses, however, w...

Excerpt: ...egligence cause of action on the grounds that: [Issue 1] Plainti
¯ failed to plead the existence of any mandatory duty, [Issue 2] Plainti
¯ cannot establish the breach of any mandatory duty owed, and [Issue 5] the primary assumption of risk doctrine bars said claim against the City. Defendant moves for summary adjudication on the premises liability cause of action on the grounds that: [Issue 3] Plainti
¯ cannot establish the existence of a dan...

Excerpt: ...orting to show service on November 8, 2023. The Þrst motion to quash (Line 10) is granted. As to the second motion (Line 11), plainti
¯ and counsel to appear (Zoom okay) to discuss whether or not plainti
¯ has belatedly complied with the requirement of mailing. This case arises from a car loan and repossession. In plainti
¯'s c u r r e n t pleading, his Þrst amended complaint, there are only two defendants. Simple Cash Loans, Inc. (dba Monta...

Excerpt: ...rd Code of Civil Procedure § 437c(o)(1) and (p)(2) provides the relevant legal standard for deciding the MSJ. Section 437c(o)(1) provides, in relevant part: A cause of action has no merit if one or more of the elements of the cause of action cannot be separately established, even if that element is separately pleaded. Section 437c(p)(2) provides, in relevant part: A defendant or cross-defendant has met his or her burden of showing that a cause o...

Excerpt: ...n clean and rentable condition. Defendants propounded routine written discovery to plainti
¯, to which plainti
¯ has not timely responded. This motion for a protective order does not dispute the content or form of the discovery. The motion contends only that “plainti
¯” should be granted a protective order, of undeÞned duration, due to “plainti
¯'s” inability to respond to discovery for medical reasons. “Plainti
¯” is said to be...

Excerpt: ...eek the Court's approval of it as a good-faith settlement. Defendant Taylor Morrison has belatedly Þled an objection to the good- faith settlement. Taylor Morrison's basic argument is that although the settlement motions say the settlement releases plainti
¯'s claims against everyone – including Taylor Morrison – for all claims relating to the sub-soil work, Taylor Morrison raises doubts about whether the release e
¯ectively being provided...

Excerpt: ...th leave to amend as to defendant Steven Thomas. Plainti
¯ is given to February 23 in which to Þle and serve a second amended complaint. If it elects not to do so, Steven Thomas will be dismissed as a defendant, as the FAC's other cause of action is not asserted against him. Defendants request judicial notice of the FAC. The Court does not need judicial notice for a pleading in its own case docket. SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COU...

Excerpt: ...emailed to corrected addresses, leaving 2 undeliverable. There have been no objections or requests for exclusion. The motion is granted, subject to clarification as to the proposed dates of payment (see below). Counsel are to appear (Zoom okay) to clear this point up. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant operates two car washes located in Concord and Fremont. Plaintiff has been employed there as a car washer since the mid-2000s. The origi...

Excerpt: ...issolution of partnership) or seventh cause of action (declaratory relief). The Court notes that it does not appear that anpne in this case contends that there is any partnership to be dissolved, however, so count 3 may be moot. The Court further notes that the SAC as filed had two plaintiffs, namely Olivarez personally and JR National Floral Network, LLC (referred to by all parties as "JR LLC"). Plaintiff has since filed a dismissal with prejudi...

Excerpt: ... packets were returned by the post office. Follow up resulted in 14 new addresses, leaving 3 nondeliverable. No objections or requests to opt out have been received. The motion is granted. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant is a financial services company offering a variety of services. Plaintiff was employed there in a non-exempt offce position. The original complaint was filed on August 31, 2021 as a class action. PAGA claims were add...

Excerpt: ...ion petition, and recommends that the coordination proceedings be SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 01/25/2024 11 assigned to San Francisco Superior Court. Coordination All parties are in agreement that these cases are complex under California Rule of Court 3.502. They are likewise in unanimous agreement that these actions should be coordinated, proceeding ...

Excerpt: ...violation of Labor Code SS 1194 and 510; (3) violation of Labor Code S 2802; (4) violation of Labor Code S 226; (5) violation of Labor Code SS 201-204; (6) violation of Labor Code S 2598 et seq.; and (7) Business and Professions Code S 17200 et seq. Defendant moves pursuant to the Federal Arbitration Act to compel Plaintiff to submit all individual claims and non-representatve PAGA claims asserted in his FAC to arbitration. Defendant also moves o...

Excerpt: ...a's motion is continued to that date to ascertain compliance. This is a lawsuit by plaintiff Nichols alleging defective home repair work. The contracts attached to the complaint are unclear as to whether the contracting entity was CalProHome or Bina personally, but it is uncontested that Bina was the principal of CalProHome. Bina, suing as "doing business as CalProHome", filed a small claims case against Nichols. ay order of SUPERIOR COURT OF CAL...

Excerpt: ...RNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 01/18/2024 5 All matters included in Atlantic Casualty's first set of requests for admissions (served on or about June 21, 2023) are deemed admitted. In its Order After Hearing, Atlantic Casualty should spell those matters out verbatim to avoid any ambiguity as to what is so deemed. Plaintiff is further ordered to serve complete responses, verifie...

Excerpt: ...general negligence; (2) medical malpractice; and (3) premises liability. For the following reasons, the motion for summary judgment is denied. The alternative moton for summary adjudication is granted in part and denied in part. It is granted as to the premises liability claim (count 3), but denied as to the medical malpractice claim (counts 1 and 2, treated as a single claim). Legal Standard Code of Civil Procedure S 437c(o)(1) and provide the r...

Excerpt: ... to exercise its discretion to reconsider the prior arbitration ruling at this point, for two reasons. First, while plaintiff has accurately described the state of the law, the legal issue must be regarded as unsettled in light of the pending Supreme Court review. And second, it is unclear that it would make practical sense to reverse only part of the prior ruling at this juncture, in light of the pendency and progress in the arbitration proceedi...

Excerpt: ...e administrator has mailed notices to 283 class members. After follow-up, no notices were non-deliverable. No objections or requests to opt out have been received. The motion is granted. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant operates an oil refinery in Martinez. Plaintiffs are employed there as Operators. The original complaint was filed on July 2, 2020 as a class and PAGA action. It was amended twice, including deletion of one named plain...

Excerpt: ... solicited funds from him for purchase of Structured Assets. (ld. at 10.) According to Plaintiff, Defendant "represented to Plaintiff that Plaintiffs retirement funds would be loaned to individuals and in exchange the individuals would secure payment to Plaintiff from their monthly vested Federal Government Pension payments. Adao further advised Plaintiff that he could purchase options from a Performance Arbitrage company, Inc. SUPERIOR COURT OF ...

Excerpt: ... to the first and eleventh causes of action. If plaintiff contests this tentatve to seek leave to amend those counts, he should come to the hearing prepared to discuss in detail how he proposes to amend, and how that will suffice. Because this is the first challenge to the complaint, plaintiff is given leave to amend as to all remaining causes of acton. Plaintiff shall file and serve any amended complaint by February 8, 2024. Should plaintiff ele...

Excerpt: ...fficient to constitute a cause of action (Code of Civil Procedure S 430.10(e). They also demurrer to the second cause of action separately claiming that it "is not properly justiciable", without citing any statutory source for that basis of the demurrer. Cross-Defendants' demurrer is overruled for the reasons set forth below. Factual Allegations and Background This matter pertains to a property dispute between two neighbors. Plaintiffs own proper...

Excerpt: ...he arbitration award (or this Court's order confirming it) operates as res judicata as such, because the claims and defendants involved were different from those now asserted in the SAC against Budde. However, may operate as collateral estoppel. Is there authority supporting or rejecting the argument that a confirmed arbitration award establishes collateral estoppel binding the losing party to all legal conclusions reached in the arbitration awar...

Excerpt: ...inistration costs, and representative payment. The moton is granted. A. Background of the Case and Terms of Settlement This is a PAGA case (not a class action), alleging a variety of violations of the Labor Code concerning failure to provide rest and meal breaks, failure to pay minimum wages and overtime, and cascading SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 01/1...

Excerpt: ...ts, and representative payment. Since preliminary approval was granted, the administrator has mailed notices to 68 class members. 3 packets were returned by the post office. Follow up resulted in 3 new addresses, leaving none nondeliverable. No objections were received, and only one class member opted out. The motion is granted, with a modification. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant provides safety monitoring services for utility lines an...

Excerpt: ...01/11/2024 31 supplemental declaration as stated herein. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant is in the home warranty business. Plaintiff worked there as a non-exempt employee from September 2016 to December 2020, although her job description is not provided. The original complaint was filed on April 12, 2021 as a class- action and PAGA case. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $285,000. The class representative payment...

Excerpt: ... defective design and installation of a fire suppression sprinkler system at the residence they built on their property located at 2 Crane Court, Orinda, California (the Property). Plaintiffs allege they engaged defendant and cross-complainant Advanced Automatic Sprinkler, Inc. to design and install the fire sprinkler system. Advanced filed a cross-complaint on January 27, 2022 and added Supreme Glass Company by Roe amendment as Roe No. 26. (UMF ...

Excerpt: ...y logistical history since then. The parties missed their originally scheduled date for final approval in February 2023. The notice to the class was sent, but it was discovered that it had been sent to an overbroad list including salaried employees. This required a stipulation to send out corrective notices. The parties then found themselves in a Catch-22 where they couldn't send the notices until they had a hearing date for final approval, but t...

Excerpt: ...ion. Plaintiff's motion is denied. As the Court will explain, Plaintiff's argument skips a step and cannot establish as a matter of law that defendants have no right to discharge storm water into the Park because they have no easement. Procedural Objections The Court rejects Defendants' objections. They are contrary to the express directions of the Court at pretrial conferences. Defendants point out that in seeking a ruling on what Plaintiff cont...

Excerpt: ...tz. He first argues, with no citation to authority or other rationale, that discovery must be strictly limited to the issue of class certification. Who says so? First, the complaint includes non-class claims. Second, even if class certification were denied or abandoned, there would remain individual and representative claims to litigate. And in any event, this case has now been pending for over three years. If the parties have not gotten started ...

Excerpt: ...by Plaintiff Praveen Gupta. For the follow-ng reasons, the Mohon is granted. SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 12/07/2023 26 Legal standard lis pendens is recorded by someone asserting a real property claim, to give notice that a lawsuit has been filed which may, if that person prevails, affect title to or possession of the real property described in the no...

Excerpt: ...in addition to whatever other costs it may be entitled to. Background and Substance of the Case Plaintiff filed this lawsuit against two residents to compel them to correct a number of what plaintiff said were violations of the HOA rules concerning defendants' unit and common areas. To make a long story short, after some litigation and extensive discussion, plaintiff now acknowledges that defendants have taken all the corrective actions that plai...

Excerpt: ... action. The other, No. C23-01484, is filed as a PAGA-only case, but asserts essentially the same set of violations of the law. In both cases, defendants bring substantially the same motion to compel arbitration, based on an arbitration agreement found in Wynn's employment contract. (See Line 12.) Although the two motons would call for slightly different treatment if they were to be granted, they raise essentially the same issues; the parties' ar...

Excerpt: ... by unspecified forms of cyber harassment and traumatization by agents of the Chinese government on account of plaintiffs' political opposition to the Chinese regime. The events giving rise to this complaint occurred in June 2020. Plaintiff Yue Ma admitted herself to an emergency psychiatric facility in Santa Clara County for trauma allegedly induced by the repressive acts of the Chinese government. She was transferred to John Muir Health Behavio...

Excerpt: ...twice during each calendar month, on days designated in advance by the employer as the regular paydays." Defendant demurs. The demurrer is overruled. Defendant is given 28 days in which to file and serve its answer. Demurrer Standards "The function of a demurrer is to test the sufficiency of the complaint as a matter of law." Holiday Matinee, Inc. v. Rambus, Inc. (2004) 118 Cal.App.4th 1413, 1420. A complaint "is sufficient if it alleges ultimate...

Excerpt: ...ral negligence, and her third cause of action for premises liability. Accordingly, summary judgment is also denied. The trial date previously set in Department 36 is no longer available because that Department is vacant. The trial date and all related dates are vacated, and the case is set for Case Management Conference and trial-setting in Department 12 on December 19, 2023 at 8:30 a.m. l. Background This is a wrongful death action. Plaintiff Re...

Excerpt: ... to file and serve a first amended complaint. In the event that he elects not to amend, FPI is given to January 5, 2024 in which to answer the surviving counts of the complaint. Legal Standard "The function of a demurrer is to test the sufficiency of the complaint as a matter of aw." (Holiday Matinee, Inc. v. Rambus, Inc. (2Cu) 118 Cal.App.4th 1413, 1420.) A complaint "is sufficient if alleges ultimate rather than evidentiary facts" (Doe v. City ...

Excerpt: ...er is to test the sufficiency of the complaint as a matter of law." (Holiday Matinee, Inc. v. Rambus, Inc. (2W4) 118 Cal.App.4th 1413, 1420.) A complaint "is sufficient if it alleges ultimate rather than evidentiary facts" (Doe v. City of Los Angeles (2W7) 42 Cal.4th 531, 550), but the plaintiff must set forth the essential facts of his or her case "with reasonable precision and with particularity sufficient to acquaint [thel defendant with the n...

Excerpt: ...rmanent injunction. SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 11/09/2023 5 Defendants demur to all Plaintiffs' causes of action for pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure S 430.10(e) on several grounds. For the follow-ng reasons, the Demurrer is overruled. Defendants are given to December 8 in which to file and serve their answer. Legal Standard "The function of a dem...

Excerpt: ...e returned by the post offce. Follow up resulted in 12 new addresses, leaving 5 nondeliverable. No objections or requests to opt out have been received. The motion is granted. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant operates a number of addiction treatment clinics. Plaintiff was employed there as a nonexempt employee. The original complaint was filed on June 3, 2022, and amended shortly thereafter to add PAGA claims. The settlement will crea...

Excerpt: ...s granted. Legal Standard "In an employment or consumer arbitration that requires, either expressly or through application of state or federal law or the rules of the arbitration provider, that the drafting party pay certain fees and costs during the pendency of an arbitration proceeding, if the fees or costs required to continue the arbitration are not paid within 30 days after the due date, the drafting party is in material breach of the arbitr...

Excerpt: ...eement, the agreement by its own terms excludes the present dispute from its scope, because the law in existence at the time of contracting did not allow for arbitration agreements for individual PAGA claims. That law has since changed, but the contract itself excludes "claims that are not subject to arbitration under current law" — meaning the aw of 2019. SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFF...

Excerpt: ... to 175 class members. 32 packets were returned by the post office. Follow up resulted in 15 new addresses, leaving 17 nondeliverable. No objections or requests to opt out have been received. SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 11/02/2023 28 A. Background and Settlement Terms Despite its clever name, Rodd & Gunn is not a sporting goods business but a retail s...

Excerpt: ... The moton is granted. Since preliminary approval was granted, the administrator has mailed notices to 407 class members. 31 packets were returned by the post office. Follow up resulted in 27 new addresses, leaving 4 nondeliverable. No objections have been received, and only one request for exclusion. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant is in the business of providing clinical outpatient intervention to autistic teens, and their SUPERIOR...

Excerpt: ... their attorney's fees, litigation costs, administration costs, and representative payments. The motion is granted. A. Background of the Case and Terms of Settlement This a PAGA case (not a class action), alleging a variety of violations of the Labor Code concerning failure to provide rest and meal breaks, failure to pay minimum wages and overtime, and cascading derivative violations. This case was first filed on February 23, 2021 as a class acti...

Excerpt: ...y November 27, 2023. This is a lawsuit between two former cohabitants, previously inwlved romantically and otherwise with each other; the female plaintiff is substantially younger than the male defendant. The male party has filed a cross-complaint against the female. This is her demurrer to his cross- complaint. Legal Standards for Ruling on Demurrer In ruling on the demurrer, the Court must accept as true all well-pleaded factual allegations of ...

Excerpt: ...TRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 11/02/2023 11 Medical care as to FAC in its entirety and all causes of action — sustained with leave to amend; (b) additionally and/or alternatively, general demurrers to FAC in its entirety and all causes of action by Tele Care and Medical Care based on failure to allege facts as to employer status in light of Exhibits A and B to FAC Exhibit 1— sustai...

Excerpt: ...rth LLC. Defendants move on the grounds that the derivative claims (second through fifth causes of action) are barred because EBO has lost standing to sue on Taylor's after relinquishing its membership interest voluntarily, without wrongdoing by Defendants. Defendants also contend that the sixth cause of action for declaratory relief is barred EBO lost standing to seek declaratory relief under the Taylor operating agreement after relinquishing it...

Excerpt: ...nt. The motions are granted. Since preliminary approval was granted, the administrator has mailed notces to 152 class members. 5 packets were returned by the post office. Follow up resulted in 2 new addresses, leaving 3 nondeliverable. No objections or requests to opt out have been received. SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 12 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CHARLES S TREAT HEARING DATE: 10/26/2023 2 A. Background and S...

Excerpt: ...driver from April to December 2022, and according to PacPizza, he is still a PacPizza employee. (Higgins Decl. '1 2; Hough Suppl. Decl. 3.) Plaintiff filed a complaint alleging a single cause of achon under the California Private Attorneys General Act, Labor Code S 2699 et seq. ("PAGA") for multiple Labor Code violations he contends he and other aggrieved employees of PacPizza have sustained. PacPizza moves to compel arbitration of Plaintiff's cl...

Excerpt: ...the reason set forth, the motion for summary judgment and motion for summary adjudication of the sixth cause of action are denied. Background Plaintiff and cross- defendant De Petra is the owner of a commercial building located at 911 Moraga Road in Lafayette. Defendant and cross-complainant Persons Plastic Surgery, Inc. ("Persons") is a tenant who leased one of the offices for its plastic surgery center, unit 205 (the "Premises"), under a writte...

Excerpt: ...motions are granted. Since preliminary approval was granted, the administrator has mailed notices to 7,126 class members. 625 packets were returned by the post office. Follow up resulted in 367 new addresses, leaving 270 non-deliverable. No objections have been received, and only one class member requested exclusion. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant and its affiliates, also sued as defendants here, are in the business of operating McD...

Excerpt: ...istrator's declaration) that when investigation turned up more class and workweeks than previously believed to exist, thereby potentially triggering an escalator clause in the settlement agreement, the response of the parties was to lop off the back end of the class period for which settlement payments will be made — and lop it off substantially tin, from the preliminary approval date (spring 2023) back to July 25, 2022. While the Court obvousl...