Excerpt: ...ing and retention and (2) general negligence against Defendant Brian Goldman, MD, a Medical Corporation (“Goldman Inc.”). For the following reasons, Hanover's MSJ is granted. CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 12/02/21 ‐ 2 ‐ At the outset, the Court also notes several defects with respect to Plaintiffs' opposition papers. First, the opposition exceeds the 20 page limit of Rule 3.1113(d) without l...

Excerpt: ... does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action; or the pleading is uncertain or ambiguous. (Code Civ. Proc., § 430.10, subds. (d‐f). The trial court is required to assume the truth of the allegations. Quelimane Company, Inc. v. Stewart Title Guaranty Co. (1998) 19 Cal.4th 26, 38. A demurrer for uncertainty lies when “the pleading is so incomprehensible that a defendant cannot reasonably respond.” Lickiss v. Financial Indu...

Excerpt: ...ehalf of themselves and as proposed class representatives alleging violations of the Industrial Welfare Commission ("IWC") Wage Order No. 1‐2001, the California Labor Code, and the Unfair Competition Law, Business & Professions Code § 17200 ("UCL"), and a fifth cause of action for civil penalties under Labor Code §§ 2698, et seq., the Private Attorney General Act ("PAGA"). Defendant MRC's general demurrer challenges only the fifth cause of a...

Excerpt: ...an alleging only a claim for failure to provide suitable seating. On May 15, 2019, Clark filed a class action alleging various violations of wage and hour requirements, as well as a suitable seating claim. On January 3, 2020, Clark filed a First Amended complaint also adding a PAGA claim. That matter was removed to federal Court, a Second amended Complaint was filed, and the case was remanded to this court. The two cases were consolidated, by sti...

Excerpt: ...�� among other things. A. Background Of course, the parties are familiar with the claims raised in the case, but the relevant facts warrant restating. Petitioners own a large tract in the Bollinger Canyon area of Moraga, which they have sought to develop with housing for decades. This effort was hampered by the fact that the Town's General Plan identified the property as a “study area,” as opposed to a more specific designation, e.g., housing...

Excerpt: ...alue of less than $10 for cash, in violation of the “Gift Card Act,” specifically Civil Code section 1749.5(b)(2), and other authorities. BP sells gift cards redeemable at Arco gas stations in California. It does not, however, own or operate the gas stations, but instead provides gasoline to them. The gift card program is not operated by BP, but by Tesoro Refining & Marketing Company LLC. A. Terms of the Settlement. BP will use its “best ef...

Excerpt: ... the duty to pay the costs, or in the alternative, an extension of time. Background A short chronology of the case may be helpful. On April 26, 2017, Respondent certified an Environmental Impact Report under CEQA for the demolition of the old county jail, located in downtown Martinez. The project was related to a number of activities that composed the County's Civic Center revitalization project. Although the EIR was certified, the County did not...

Excerpt: ...nson brings this action on behalf of himself, the State of California, and other current and former employees who worked for Defendants, Equity Residential Services, LLC, Equity Residential Services II, LLC, and Equity Residential Management LLC. Plaintiff was as an hourly paid, non‐exempt Leasing Consultant from approximately August 2016 through August 16, 2018. Plaintiff allege various Labor Code violations, except reporting time violations. ...

Excerpt: ...ss action complaint alleging that defendant violated the Labor Code in various ways. Additional claims, and plaintiff Becerra, were added by a Second Amended Complaint filed June 21, 2021. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $150,000. The class representative payment to each plaintiff would be $5,000. Counsel's attorney's fees would be $52,500 (35% of the settlement). Litigation costs would not exceed $10,000. The settlement ad...

Excerpt: ...claims under PAGA and a class action on behalf of non‐exempt employees alleging that defendant violated the Labor Code in various ways. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $750,000. The class representative payment to each plaintiff would be $7,500. Counsel's attorney's fees would be $250,000 (33 1/3% of the settlement). Litigation costs would not exceed $25,000. The settlement administrator (Simpluris) would cap its costs at...

Excerpt: ...uring the COVID pandemic. It did not allege the variety of other claims often found in PAGA cases. On June 28, 2021, a First Amended Complaint was filed, alleging a class CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 11/18/21 ‐ 17 ‐ action raising similar claims. (During the time in question, reimbursements were made, but issues remain concerning the amount and interest on delayed payments.) The settlement woul...

Excerpt: ...personal jurisdiction over a nonresident defendant who has not been served with process within the state comports with the requirements of the due process clause of the federal Constitution if the defendant has such minimum contacts with the state that the assertion of jurisdiction does not violate "'traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice.'" (International Shoe Co. v. Washington (1945) 326 U.S. 310, 316 . . .) (Vons Companies, I...

Excerpt: ...Court finds that this argument lacks merit. In the Court's minute orders of August 15 and September 12, 2019, confirmed in a formal order filed on October 1, the Court did not declare the 2019 arbitration agreement a nullity. To the contrary, the challenge the Court faced was precisely that the 2019 arbitration agreement was in effect — and, as the Court determined at the September 12 hearing, was not unconscionable. The Court was thus required...

Excerpt: .... Green's mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure § 473(b). Mr. Green acknowledges he was served with the summons and complaint in September 2020. (R. Green Decl. p. 1, ll. 26‐27.) He communicated with counsel for Plaintiff after receiving the complaint and understood that if Mr. Green evicted his tenant defendant Chris Davidson, Mr. Green would not have to "worry about" the lawsuit. He deferre...

Excerpt: ... filed by Petitioners AFSCME Local 2703, Merced County Sheriff's Employees Association (an affiliate of Teamsters Local 856), Mary McWatters, and Jeffrey Miller; and (4) a motion to enter a stipulated judgment filed in the Contra Costa County ERA case by Ken Westermann, Sean Fawell, the Contra Costa County Deputy Sheriff's Association, and the United Professional Fire Fighters of Contra Costa County, Local 1230. On September 11, 2020, the First D...

Excerpt: ...ls gift cards redeemable at Arco gas stations in California. It does not, however, own or operate the gas stations, but instead provides gasoline to them. A. Terms of the Settlement. BP will use its “best efforts to provide written notice to its ARCO‐branded dealers and operators of stations” in 43 specified northern California counties that “any gift certificate with a cash value of less than ten dollars is redeemable in cash for its cas...

Excerpt: ... of costs is defined in Code of Civil Procedure section 1032(a)(4), which provides, in part, “If any party recovers other than monetary relief and in situations other than as specified, the ‘prevailing party' shall be as determined by the court, and under those circumstances, the court in its discretion, may allow costs or not and, if allowed, may apportion costs between the parties on the same or adverse sides[.]” While there are a number ...

Excerpt: ... Ford and Pamela Thurman‐Ford, oppose the motion, arguing CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 10/14/21 ‐ 7 ‐ Chevron has not met its burden. Because Chevron has not sufficiently shown California to be inconvenient, and Texas a more appropriate forum, the Court denies the motion. Background This case arises from plaintiff J.D. Ford's diagnosis of lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma, a type of non‐Hodgkin's ...

Excerpt: ...e case in order to justify the settlement amount. Second, the Court is concerned about the installment provisions. Installment payments create a risk of non‐payment, and increase the likelihood that some class members will not be found. Accordingly, a justification should be provided for the delay. (If it requires the provision of confidential business information, an appropriate application under CRC 2.550 can be made.) The Court has noticed t...

Excerpt: ...ms The original complaint was filed October 4, 2019. It is a class action complaint alleging that defendant violated the Labor Code by underpaying overtime to traveling healthcare staff, by excluding per diem benefits and non‐discretionary bonuses from the determination of the rate of pay. The First Amended Complaint, filed February 25, 2021, added allegations under PAGA. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $250,000. The clas...

Excerpt: ...d 10th causes of action, inclusive, are sustained, with leave to amend. CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 10/14/21 ‐ 11 ‐ Factual Background Plaintiff alleges that she is a former employee of Golden State Defendants. (FAC ¶¶ 24, 25.) She alleges she was employed by Defendant in California from "approximately April 2019 to approximately November 2019." She alleges a class action as well as individu...

Excerpt: ...tion, without leave to amend, and CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 10/07/21 ‐ 10 ‐ otherwise overruled. Defendants shall file and serve their answers on or before October 18, 2021. Background Plaintiff claims defendants, who operate jointly (Complaint, ¶¶8‐14), induced her to enter into a contract to purchase a cryptocurrency “mining rig” for the purposes of mining Ethereum, and for necessa...

Excerpt: ... of it. Plaintiff alleges that her husband, decedent Luciano Susino, was exposed to asbestos between 1978 and 1980 on ships owned by defendant Texaco and that in December 2017 he was diagnosed with mesothelioma, from which he died on March 5, 2018. (See Opp., p. 8, fn. 3.) Plaintiff filed suit nearly three years later, on March 3, 2021. The Jones Act states, “Except as otherwise provided by law, a civil action for damages for personal injury or...

Excerpt: ..., 2022, at 8:30 a.m. CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 10/07/21 ‐ 13 ‐ Respondents demur to cause of action one. Cause of action one for a writ of mandate is based on two alleged errors: (1) failure to provide a fair and impartial hearing due to bias of two city councilmembers and (2) failure to make findings that are supported by the evidence (i.e. failure to comply with Topanga Ass'n for a Scenic ...

Excerpt: ...Terms CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 10/07/21 ‐ 3 ‐ The original complaint was filed July 9, 2019. It is a class action complaint alleging that defendant violated the Labor Code by filing to provide meal and rest periods, unpaid “off the clock” work, failure to pay minimum wage, overtime pay, and premium pay, and failure to provide wages when due. In addition it alleges that defendant violate...

Excerpt: ...tion. They all involve relevant issues, such as timekeeping and payroll, complaints, job titles and descriptions, reimbursement policies, surveys, documents sent to covered employees, declarations obtained by defendant. Plaintiff argues that defendant has been relying on arbitration agreements all along, and now objects to producing them, and that defendant has made numerous boiler plate objections on trade secret grounds. Since the motion was fi...

Excerpt: ...parties agree that there is no per se rule barring the corporate attorneys from communicating with the employees. (Howard Gunty Profit Sharing Plan v. Superior Court (2001) 88 Cal.App.4th 572, 578.) That is not the end of the matter, however. A trial court has both the duty and authority to exercise control over communications between the parties and potential class members to prevent unfairness. (Barriga v. 99 Cents Only Stores LLC (2020) 51 Cal...

Excerpt: ... the party's interest in the litigation.” (Code Civ. Proc., § 36(a), (f).) Isaak attests that he falls within the terms of the statute, being 84 years old and in failing health. On its face, section 36 admits no exceptions. It has been strictly construed in ordinary civil cases to require preference even where a variety of circumstances indicate that trial within 120 days is not appropriate. (Swaithes v. Superior Court (1989) 212 Cal.App.3d 10...

Excerpt: ...9 HEARING DATE: 09/30/21 ‐ 12 ‐ The demurrer filed by defendants East Bay Coyotes, Inc., Jason Wolenik, and Michael Topf (collectively, “EBC Defendants”), is overruled. The demurrer filed by defendants Dos Coyotes Development Company, LLC, Dos Coyotes Sunrise, Inc., Robert H. Davidson, Trumax, LLC, Colmax, LLC, Coltam, Inc., Dos Coyotes Concord, Inc., Coyote Sunshine, LLC and Coyote R15, Inc. (collectively, “DCDC Defendants”), is sust...

Excerpt: ...ave to amend; (b) the demurrer to the 8th cause of action is sustained, without leave to amend; and (c) demurrer to the 11th cause of action based on the statute of limitations is overruled. Factual Background Plaintiff alleges that she is a former employee of YDesign. (FAC ¶¶ 24, 25.) She alleges she was employed by Defendant in California from "approximately April 2019 to approximately November 2019." She alleges a class action as well as ind...

Excerpt: ...from activity protected by section 425.16. [Citation.] If the defendant makes the required showing, the burden shifts to the plaintiff to demonstrate the merit of the claim by establishing a probability of success. We have CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 09/16/21 ‐ 6 ‐ described this second step as a ‘summary‐judgment‐ like procedure.' [Citation.]” (Baral v. Schnitt (2016) 1 Cal.5th 376, 3...

Excerpt: ... affirmative defenses that do not state facts sufficient to constitute a defense under sections 936 and 945.5 of the Civil Code” and “on the grounds that the affirmative defenses are still too conclusory and/or not supported by the additional allegations.” (Not. of Demurrer at 2:3‐6.) CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 09/16/21 ‐ 2 ‐ For the following reasons, the Demurrer is overruled. Analy...

Excerpt: ...d on the Court's ruling on the demurrers, the motion to strike is denied as moot. Background and Plaintiff's Claims Plaintiff Francis Clay was a tenant at a property owned or under the control of the Richmond Housing Authority ("RHA"). In December 2018, RHA began eviction proceedings against Mr. Clay for non‐payment of rent in Richmond Housing Authority v. Francis Clay, Case No. RS19‐ 0017 (the "Unlawful Detainer Action"). (RJN Exh. 1.) The p...

Excerpt: ...portation services in the coastal and harbor San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Northwest Puget Sound region. This is a class action suit. Plaintiffs seek to represent a proposed class composed of and defined as: All employees who worked one or more shifts as a boat captain, junior captain, or crew member on a sea bearing vessel for Starlight Marine Services, Inc. in the State of California since (4) years prior to the filing of this action to the...

Excerpt: ...ust enrichment causes of action based on the failure to state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action. (Code of Civil Procedure § 430.10(e).) Defendant demurs to the breach of contract claim for the failure to allege if the contract is oral or written (Code of Civil Procedure § 430.10(g) and for uncertainty (Code of Civil Procedure § 430.10(f)). Consumer Legal Remedies Act (cause of action three) Defendant argues that the complaint do...

Excerpt: ... Gutierrez action, Dennis Gutierrez v. Homegoods, Inc., et al, San Bernardino County Superior Court, Case No. CIV‐DS‐2017556, is finally resolved (by judgment, settlement, or otherwise), or until lifted by court order. The present order is expressly made without prejudice to any intervention / coordination motion / petition that plaintiff may bring in the Gutierrez case. The basis for this ruling is as follows. Background In this PAGA case, p...

Excerpt: ...ning") at its Martinez facility. (Proposed FAC ¶¶ 11, 12.) They filed this action on behalf of themselves and as proposed class representatives alleging violations of the IWC Wage Order No. 1‐2001, the California Labor Code, and the Unfair Competition Law, Business & Professions Code § 17200 ("UCL"). They are also the plaintiffs in a related action previously filed in this Court against another refining company, Equilon Enterprises LLC. That...

Excerpt: ...eeding must be completed and the award rendered.” (Bosworth v. Whitmore (2006) 135 Cal.App.4th 536, 550.) Plaintiffs raise two threshold issues. First, they assert that defendant must move to lift the stay before it can file the motion. Section 1283.8 allows the time for the award to be fixed “within such time as the court orders on petition of a party to the arbitration.” This does not expressly require that the stay be lifted in order to ...

Excerpt: ...e recovery of money or damages is demanded, the amount demanded shall be stated.” “[T]he specific dollar amount is necessary only when a default judgment is to be entered. The purpose of such a requirement is to ensure that the defendant is sufficiently aware of the consequences of not answering the complaint. [Citation.] However, ‘in any other case, the court may grant the plaintiff any relief consistent with the case made by the complaint...

Excerpt: ... requested supplemental information and continued the hearing. After that hearing, on February 18, 2021, the Court granted preliminary approval. A. Background and Settlement Terms The original complaint was filed May 3, 2019. It is a class action complaint alleging failure to pay wages and/or overtime, failure to provide meal periods and rest breaks, failure to provide appropriate wage statements and failure to reimburse necessary business expens...

Excerpt: ...nse reimbursements, unlawful deductions, waiting time penalties, and non‐ compliant wage statements. It also includes PAGA allegations, which were added in the First Amended Complaint, filed December 12, 2019, based on a notice provided to the LWDA on September 16, 2019. A Second Amended Complaint was filed on March 22, 2021. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $950,000. The class representative payment to plaintiff would be ...

Excerpt: ...(3) failure to pay overtime wages; (4) failure to pay minimum wages; (5) failure to pay all wages due to discharged and quitting employees; (6) failure to maintain required records; (7) failure to indemnify employees for necessary expenditures CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 08/26/21 ‐ 10 ‐ incurred in discharge of duties; (8) failure to indemnify employees for necessary expenditures incurred in d...

Excerpt: ... 2020, and were due on April 6, 2020. Nearly all of the time during which these requests have been pending has occurred during the COVID‐19 pandemic, and defendant has requested, and received, extensions due to the logistical difficulties cause by the pandemic. Responses were further stayed while the parties engaged in unsuccessful settlement efforts. Moreover, some further extensions were directed by the Court as part of an Informal Discovery ...

Excerpt: ...y, she moves for approval of an award of attorney's fees and expenses, as well as a service award for plaintiff. A. Background and Settlement Terms The original complaint was filed November 5, 2015, as a class action. It alleged that defendants Zagaris and Disclosure Source entered into an agreement under which PMZ obtained Natural Hazard Disclosure (NHD) reports to be used in real estate transactions from Disclosure Source, identified them as ha...

Excerpt: ...(premised on a violation of Civil Code §§ 1749.45 et seq.) Defendant demurs pursuant to CCP § 430.10(e) on the grounds that Civil Code § 1749(b)(2) does not require immediate cash refunds of gift cards with an outstanding balance of less than $10.00 and that Chevron's policy, requiring consumers seeking a redemption to use a toll‐free number or web address, does not constitute an impractical and unreasonable barrier to a consumer's right of...

Excerpt: ...�filed opposition papers. B. The Governing Standard. The Bridgeford decision cited in defendant's opening memorandum states the standard governing this demurrer: The decision whether a case is suitable to proceed as a class action ordinarily is made on a motion for class certification. [Citation omitted.] A court may decide the question earlier by sustaining a demurrer to the class action allegations of a complaint only if it concludes as a matte...

Excerpt: ...e it required plaintiff to show that Favro's conduct “increased the risk” to plaintiffs. The requirement that the jury find that Favro's conduct “increased the risk” to the plaintiffs was appropriate. (MOFD also states that the special instruction based on CACI 473 as given by the Court was inappropriate, but the rationale for the argument essentially is based on Question 1 of the verdict form.) Both Siebert and the previous appellate dec...

Excerpt: ...es. Plaintiff also seeks approval of attorney's fees and a representative incentive payment. A. Background and Settlement Terms The original complaint was filed November 26, 2018, as a class action. Plaintiff amended complaint in order to raise PAGA allegations, which were not included in the original complaint. CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 08/05/21 ‐ 10 ‐ The PAGA notices were provided to the ...

Excerpt: ... one‐year statute of limitations. Plaintiffs argue that any claims subject to a one‐year statute of limitations are timely because of a Doe amendment filed two years after this litigation started. To determine which party is correct requires a detailed examination of the procedural history of the litigation. This case arises out of alleged medical malpractice and elder abuse committed at two healthcare facilities, Martinez Convalescent Hospit...

Excerpt: ...reasons, the Demurrer to affirmative defenses 3, 30‐32, 35‐39 and 41 is sustained, with leave to amend Analysis The standard for a demurrer to an answer is whether the answer states facts sufficient to constitute a defense. (South Shore Land Co. v. Petersen (1964) 226 Cal.App.2d 725, 732.) A defendant must set forth only the “essential facts” of the affirmative defense, “sufficient to acquaint [plaintiff] with the nature, source and ext...

Excerpt: ...filing of the amended pleading. To the extent parties can agree, plaintiff may make agreed changes prior to filing. Otherwise, the amended complaint shall be filed in the form attached as Exhibit A to the Declaration of Mark A. Milstein. Background This is a construction defect case. Defendant Arbor Building Group is a general contractor, who contracted with owner and plaintiff, Creekside Walk Ventures, LLC, for the construction of an apartment c...

Excerpt: ...terms of the proposed settlement have changed somewhat since the agreement was submitted, and since the initial hearing before the Court on June 24, 2021. The total settlement payment is $790,000. This is composed in part of attorney's fees of $263,333.33 (one‐third of the total recovery), $13,706.67 in litigation costs, and a maximum of $15,000 in costs to the settlement administrator. ILYM Group is the administrator. The remainder of the fund...

Excerpt: ... action; (b) denied as to the sixth cause of action against Namath Sahar, Joseph Sahar, and Nathan Sahar, and (c) granted as to the sixth cause of action against Michele Sahar. Factual Background Plaintiff Said Shefayee Jr. has sued his ex‐wife Michele Sahar, his former father‐in‐law, defendant Namath ("Nemat") Sahar, and two other former relatives, Nathan ("Haseeb") Sahar and Joseph ("Habib") Sahar. In referring to defendants in this rulin...

Excerpt: ...set an order to show cause why a preliminary injunction should not issue for May 27, 2021. That hearing was continued to July 8, 2021. For the following reasons, Plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction is denied. Request for Judicial Notice Defendant's unopposed request for judicial notice of several County Recorder's Office documents is granted. Evid. Code §§ 452, 453. Legal Standard The ruling on an application for preliminary injunct...

Excerpt: ...ty of the San Francisco Bay herring stock and fishery”. Defendant requests that the prayer for relief for environmental monitoring be stricken. In Miranda v. Shell Oil Co. (1993) 17 Cal.App.4th 1651 the court allowed a toxic tort plaintiff to get damages for the cost of future medical monitoring as a result of exposure to the toxin. The court explained that “[a] toxic‐tort plaintiff may not recover for preventative medical care and checkups...

Excerpt: .... The matter will not be transferred until the order is approved and the fee is paid. Case management conference set for July 20, 2021 is vacated. Background and Motion to Transfer From approximately November 2019 to June 2020, Shantiel Mueller (“plaintiff”) worked for Urban Plates, LLC and Urban Plates‐Del Mar, LLC (“defendants”) at their restaurant in Carlsbad, San Diego County, California. (Complaint, ¶6.) Defendants are alleged to ...

Excerpt: ...COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 06/24/21 ‐ 6 ‐ defense counsel sent an email inquiring about the discovery, to [email protected]. Apparently, this resulted in an extension, because on January 25, 2021, defense counsel sent another email to the same address, stating that an extension had been granted but that it had expired. Defense counsel granted plaintiff's request for another extension, and resp...

Excerpt: ...r meal and rest breaks, and failure to provide accurate itemized wage statements. The total settlement payment is $790,000. This is composed in part of attorney's fees of $263,333.33 (one‐ third of the total recovery), $13,706.67 in litigation costs, and a maximum of $15,000 in costs to the settlement administrator. ILYM Group is the administrator. The remainder of the funds, $497,960.60, is a PAGA penalty, which will be distributed 75% to the ...

Excerpt: ...tractors, including Custom Marble. With the assistance of a mediator, Custom Marble and Kiper reached an “issue release” settlement for $12,500 subject to a judicial determination that the settlement was in good faith, which was issued in September 2020. Custom Marble and Kiper's agreement contemplated further negotiations as to pre‐litigation Crawford fees, though they agreed any defects or damages arising from Custom Marble's scope of wor...

Excerpt: ...ourt must order arbitration if it determines that a valid agreement to arbitrate exists. Here, one does, as discussed below. Background In February 2016, plaintiff was hired as a cook by defendant. Defendant is a subsidiary of Peak Restaurant Partners, LLC, which operates 40 IHOP restaurants in seven states. (See Decl. of Patricia Martinez in Support of Motion, “Martinez Decl.,” ¶¶2‐ 4.) Plaintiff, a non‐English speaker, signed a number...

Excerpt: ... class action complaint alleging that defendant violated the Labor Code by failing to provide meal and rest periods, and premium pay. PAGA allegations were added in the Second Amended Complaint, filed September 14, 2020. The submitted materials document that initial PAGA notices and notice of the settlement were provided to the LWDA. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $630,000. The class representative payment would be $7,500....

Excerpt: ...tlement Terms The original complaint was filed October 7, 2019. It is a class action complaint, on behalf of two classes of employees. One class is General Class Members, who allegedly were misclassified as “exempt” employees, and therefore did not receive appropriate paychecks, were not paid for all hours work, and did not receive rest or meal breaks. The second class, Wage Statement Class Members, allegedly received wage statements that did...

Excerpt: .... CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 06/10/21 ‐ 10 ‐ On July 27, 2020, ROIC sued defendants for breach of their lease based on nonpayment of rent. The complaint attaches a copy of the lease as Exhibit A ("Pinole Lease"). Defendants filed their answer to the complaint in August 2020. Defendants now seek leave to file a cross‐complaint based on Plaintiff's alleged breach of the Pinole Lease in Novemb...

Excerpt: ...t counters that plaintiffs have not satisfied the conditions for lifting the stay. (Opposition, pp. 5‐6, Part III‐ A.) Both arguments are based on a mistaken premise. The Court previously stayed this action until one of the following developments occurs:  The Paez action, Paez v. Beverages & More, Inc., Los Angeles Superior Court No. 19‐STCV‐30950, is finally resolved by judgment, settlement, or otherwise.  The coordination motion j...

Excerpt: ... to traveling healthcare staff, by excluding per diem benefits and non‐ discretionary bonuses from the determination of the rate of pay. The First Amended Complaint, filed February 25, 2021, added allegations under PAGA. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $250,000. The class representative payment to plaintiff would be $2,500. Counsel's attorney's fees would be $83,333 (33% of the settlement). Litigation costs would not exce...

Excerpt: ...mpetition Law (Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 17200 et seq.). Defendant demurs pursuant to CCP § 430.10(e) on the grounds that Civil Code § 1749(b)(2) does not require immediate cash refunds of gift cards with an outstanding balance of less than $10.00, that subsection (b)(2) does not provide a private cause of action, and that Plaintiff has failed to allege his statutory standing for his UCL cause of action. Legal Standard “The function of a demurre...

Excerpt: ...c., and Essex Property Trust, Inc. The only relationship these third parties have to this case is that each is a former employer of Johnson. The subpoenas seek information related to plaintiff's past compensation, employment applications, hours worked, work schedule, attendance records and complaints. Johnson moves to quash the subpoenas, arguing that the information is not relevant to this case, invades his privacy, and is for purposes of harass...

Excerpt: ...bor Code by failing to include all discretionary incentive pay in the regular rate of pay for purposes of calculating overtime, failing to provide proper expense reimbursements, failing to pay wages for time spent at mandatory meetings, failing to provide meal and rest breaks, waiting time penalties, and non‐compliant wage statements. Previously, on February 8, 2019, Molale had filed a complaint in this county making CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT...

Excerpt: ...r expense reimbursements, unlawful deductions, waiting time penalties, and non‐ compliant wage statements. It also includes PAGA allegations, which were added in the First Amended Complaint, filed December 12, 2019, based on a notice provided to the LWDA on September 16, 2019. A Second Amended Complaint was filed on March 22, 2021. The settlement would create a gross settlement fund of $950,000. The class representative payment to plaintiff wou...

Excerpt: ...sideration: Requests for Judicial Notice In connection with the MJoP, MCERA asks the Court to take judicial notice of various materials. The Court grants judicial notice of the First Amended Petition filed in this case (Exhibit A). The Court grants judicial notice of the remittiturs (Exhibits D and E). With respect to the remaining materials, the Court grants judicial notice of the existence and contents of those materials, but declines to draw a...

Excerpt: ...furnished, the complaint will be dismissed. Background This action arises from a motor vehicle accident occurring on September 16, 2016, on Interstate 80 within the city limits of Richmond. Plaintiff John Brosnan alleges he was travelling eastbound in Lane 4 in heavy traffic. Defendant Darazette Jackson allegedly drove from the shoulder into Lane 4 without signaling. Plaintiff did not have sufficient roadway to stop and collided with rear of Defe...

Excerpt: ...ted the Labor Code by filing to provide meal and rest periods, unpaid “off the clock” work, failure to pay minimum wage, overtime pay, and premium pay, and failure to provide wages when due. In addition it alleges that defendant violated the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. § 1681b) (“FCRA”), by failing to make required disclosures and failing to obtain proper consent before running credit checks on employees and prospective ...

Excerpt: ...P § 430.10 (e).) While plaintiff has requested leave to amend, he has failed to state how he could amend the latter two claims to state a cause of action. (Goodman v. Kennedy (1976) 18 Cal. 3d 335, 349.) The Arag entities shall file and serve their Answer to the SAC on or before May 27, 2021. Request for Judicial Notice The court denies Arag's request to take judicial notice of the existence, contents and truth of the purported transcript of the...

Excerpt: ...SAC”). The SAC alleges causes of action for (1) violation of Civil Code §§ 896, 897; (2) violations and enforcement of governing documents; (3) breach of fiduciary duty; (4) breach of construction contracts; (5) strict liability; (6) negligence; and (7) breach of implied warranty. Only the first, second, and third causes of action are alleged against Defendant. Defendant demurs to just the CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPA...

Excerpt: ...Settlement Terms The original complaint was filed June 26, 2019. It is a class action complaint alleging failure to pay wages and/or overtime, failure to provide meal periods and rest breaks, and failure to reimburse business expenses. The complaint alleges that the plaintiff class regularly worked overtime, but the rate of overtime pay was not properly calculated because in calculating the regular rate of pay, defendant failed to include commiss...

Excerpt: ...ealing (class); and (5) breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing (individual). Defendant demurs to Plaintiff's first four causes of action pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure (“CCP”) § 430.10 on several grounds. This demurrer came previously on for hearing on April 8, 2021. Before that hearing, the Court posted a tentative ruling on April 7, 2021 directing that the parties be prepared to discuss the following issues: Not...

Excerpt: ... May 20, 2021. The Court waives the usual page limitation on memoranda of points and authorities for the papers to be filed on May 13 and May 20. The Court requests that courtesy copies of all papers be provided to Department 39. CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 04/29/21 ‐ 21 ‐ A. Procedural Posture. On January 13, 2021, petitioner Oak Hill Park Company (“Oak Hill”) commenced this proceeding by...

Excerpt: ... granted preliminary approval after requiring some supplemental briefing. CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 04/29/21 ‐ 9 ‐ A. Terms of Settlement The proposed class would consist of all consumers in California who have or had a Mendocino Farms gift card with a balance of $10 or less from November 18, 2015 to the date of preliminary approval of the settlement. The relief provided is that Mendocino Fa...

Excerpt: ...overtime, failure to provide proper meal and rest breaks, and failure to provide accurate itemized wage statements. More specifically, plaintiff alleges that defendant did not reimburse for cell phone expenses even though a cell phone is needed for use of its mobile application, that defendant failed to pay for time worked traveling between patients, that defendant changed employees' hourly rates after they began working, that defendant failed to...

Excerpt: ...or before May 3, 2021, at 5 pm. The supplemental briefs shall not exceed ten pages in length, excluding any pages devoted exclusively to captions or signatures. Tables of contents/authorities are not necessary. The joint declaration shall be as long as needed to address the Court's question. The supplemental submissions shall address the following questions: (1) the briefing on the MJoP indicates that the parties agree that the Supreme Court's op...

Excerpt: ...ng the fees were in the court file, and the matters should have been scheduled together, the Court is considering the fees as part of the motion for approval and the later hearing date for the fee motion will be vacated.) CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 04/22/21 ‐ 3 ‐ A. Background and Settlement Terms The original complaint was filed December 24, 2019. It is a class action complaint alleging that...

Excerpt: ...estar attorney's fee. The primary disagreement is that the City disputes the Scheer's claim for a multiplier of 1.5 in addition to the lodestar amount. Generally, fee multipliers may be approved by the court in its discretion, based on a variety of factors. (Ketchum v. Moses (2001) 24 Cal.4th 1122, 1138‐1139.) These factors include the risk of non‐payment of a contingent fee, whether this risk has been mitigated; and whether the matter involv...

Excerpt: ...ss is defined as follows: “All current and former hourly‐paid or non‐exempt employees who worked for any of the Defendants within the State of California at any time during the period from four years preceding the filing of this Complaint to final judgment.” According to the Declaration of Ingrid Garcia, human resources director for VICI Incorporated, who also serves as the custodian for certain business records, VICI has employed approxi...

Excerpt: ...laint was filed November 5, 2015, as a class action. It alleged that defendants Zagaris and Disclosure Source entered into an agreement under which PMZ obtained Natural Hazard Disclosure (NHD) reports to be used in real estate transactions from Disclosure Source, identified them as having been produced by Valley NHD, an entity controlled by PMZ, and marked up the price paid (from either $39 or $49 each to $88.95 each) without doing any additional...

Excerpt: ...y overtime, failure to CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 04/08/21 ‐ 9 ‐ provide proper meal and rest breaks, and failure to provide accurate itemized wage statements. More specifically, plaintiff alleges that defendant did not reimburse for cell phone expenses even though a cell phone is needed for use of its mobile application, that defendant failed to pay for time worked traveling between patients...

Excerpt: ...is granted, as discussed below. Background On July 22, 2016, plaintiff filed its complaint alleging anticompetitive activity on the part of certain defendants. Those defendants were Richmond Patient's Group, Holistic Healing Collective, Inc., 7 Stars Holistic Foundation, Inc., William Koziol, Darrin Parle, Alexis Parle (aka Alexis Koziol), Rebecca Vasquez, Zeaad M. Handoush, Lisa Hirscchorn, Antwon Cloird, Cesar Zepeda, and Does 1 though 50. Alad...

Excerpt: ...sting trial date has the potential to cause prejudice to that defendant. The new defendant may raise its own objections to the trial date once it makes an appearance. Background On July 22, 2016, plaintiff filed its complaint alleging anticompetitive activity on the part of defendants Richmond Patient's Group, Holistic Healing Collective, Inc., 7 Stars Holistic Foundation, Inc., William Koziol, Darrin Parle, Alexis Parle (aka Alexis Koziol), Rebe...

Excerpt: ...; (3) an order permitting the deposition of third‐party Yale Investment Office (based on a previous order of the Court); and (4) monetary sanctions. While the notice of motion itself does not identify the CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 39 HEARING DATE: 04/01/21 ‐ 7 ‐ specific requests, the “Separate Statement” does, identifying several categories of requests to KCM: documents concerning plaintiff's contribu...

Excerpt: ...vertime, failure to provide proper meal and rest breaks, and failure to provide accurate itemized wage statements. The claims revolve specifically around “time shaving” practices and specified time‐consuming “clocking in” procedures, as well as off‐the‐clock labor caused by closing‐up procedures. Finally, plaintiff alleges that overtime was miscalculated by failure to include certain incentive compensation in the regular rate of p...

Excerpt: ...s overruled as to the fourth cause of action. Background Plaintiff hired defendant, a licensed aesthetician, to perform a cosmetic permanent lip tattoo to serve as plaintiff's permanent lipstick. Defendant performed a lip tattoo, but allegedly used the wrong colors and the outline of plaintiff's lips turned a strong dark/burgundy color. Plaintiff had specifically requested this result be avoided. Because the shape and coloring was so “unattract...

Excerpt: ... human resources services. A. Background and Settlement Terms The original complaint was filed November 26, 2018, as a class action. Plaintiff seeks leave to file an amended complaint, in order to raise PAGA allegations, which were not included in the original complaint. The PAGA notices were provided to the LWDA on November 6, 2020. Notice of the settlement was provided to the LWDA on January 19, 2021. The parties undertook discovery as part of ...

Excerpt: ...e requested relief would require a trial court to assume the functions of an administrative agency, or to interfere with the functions of an administrative agency.' [Citation.] A court also may abstain when ‘the lawsuit involves determining complex economic policy, which is best handled by the Legislature or an administrative agency.' [Citation.] In addition, judicial abstention may be appropriate in cases where ‘granting injunctive relief wo...

Excerpt: ...Motion is therefore brought by Aerotek alone. The Motion is granted in part. The following portions of the First Amended Complaint are stricken:  page 5, lines 8–9 (“and the failure to include premium pay for missed and/or interrupted rest and meal breaks”)  page 6, line 28 and page 7 line 1 (“and the meal and rest period premiums owed”)  page 4, line 21 [sic] (“and meal and rest period premiums”) No leave to amend has been...

Excerpt: ...stipulation, that the claims be sent to arbitration “with the exception of the PAGA claims[.]” The matter was stayed pending arbitration, and plaintiffs retained their right to pursue PAGA claims after the arbitration was completed. Plaintiffs have now filed a motion “to approve PAGA settlement and to dismiss PAGA claim.” At mediation, the parties reached an agreement resolving the individual claims. In addition each plaintiff “releases...

Excerpt: ... itemized wage statements. The total settlement payment is $555,000. This is composed of $350,434.19 in PAGA penalties (of which 75% will be paid to the LWDA, and the aggrieved employees will receive 25%, allocated based on the number of pay periods that they worked), $185,000 in attorney's fees, costs of $13,665.81 (not to exceed $15,000), and $5,900 in costs to the settlement administrator (not to exceed $7,000). The fees, litigation costs and ...

Excerpt: ...mproper. Failure to Timely File Defendant's Declaration Code of Civil Procedure section 473(b) allows a court “relieve a party or his or her legal representative from a judgment, dismissal, order, or other proceeding taken against him or her through his or her mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect.” Rather than require Defendant to file a formal motion for relief under section 473(b), the Court requested a declaration from cou...

Excerpt: ...oviding payroll and human resources services. A. Background and Settlement Terms The original complaint was filed November 26, 2018, as a class action. Plaintiff seeks leave to file an amended complaint, in order to raise PAGA allegations, which were not included in the original complaint. The proposed First Amended Complaint recites that PAGA notices were provided to the LWDA on November 6, 2020, but the record does not document that the notice ...

Excerpt: ...lleging two causes of action, trespass and nuisance. He alleges that Kalin rides his bicycle on a private road, Calle Arroyo, in the residential community known as Diablo, and that he encourages others to do so in violation of a judgment by the Court in a related action which declared that Calle Arroyo is private and not subject to a general right of access or use by the public. The anti‐SLAPP motion was not directed at the trespass cause of ac...

Excerpt: ... supplemental information. Plaintiff filed a supplemental declaration and memorandum for this hearing. A. Background and Settlement Terms The original complaint was filed May 3, 2019. It is a class action complaint alleging failure to pay wages and/or overtime, failure to provide meal periods and rest breaks, failure to provide appropriate wage statements and failure to reimburse necessary business expenses. A Second Amended Complaint was filed o...

Excerpt: ...rs at the Chevron refinery in Richmond. Plaintiffs challenge Defendant Chevron's practice of scheduling refinery Operators for mandatory “standby” shifts and failing to pay the required reporting time pay. Pursuant to Paragraph 5 of the Wage Order 1‐2001, an employee is entitled to reporting time pay when he or she “is required to report for work and does report, but is not put to work or is furnished less than half said employee's usual ...