Excerpt: ...ach of contract; (2) fraud; (3) negligence; (4) wrongful foreclosure; (5) constructive eviction; (6) breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing; (7) violation of California Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 17200 et seq.; and (8) declaratory relief. Defendants demur pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure § 430.10 et seq. on the grounds that Plaintiffs lack standing and that Plaintiffs fail to state facts giving rise to a cause of action. This Demur...

Excerpt: ...t, the opposition memorandum must be no more than 15 pages. (California Rules of Court, Rule 3.1113(d).) The opposition also failed to include a table of contents and authorities, which is required for all memorandum that exceed 10 pages. (Rule 3.1113(f).) The Court has exercised its discretion to consider the opposition memorandum despite these violations. Future violations may result in the Court refusing to consider the offending brief. Based ...

Excerpt: ...tion.' (Code Civ. Proc., § 437c, subd. (p)(1).) If the plaintiff meets this burden, it is up to the defendant ‘to show that a triable issue of one or more material facts exists as to that cause of action or a defense thereto.' ” (S.B.C.C., Inc. v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co. (2010) 186 Cal.App.4th 383, 388.) Plaintiff has met its burden on summary judgment by showing that it has evidence to meet all elements of its common count claims. �...

Excerpt: ...ly meet and confer such that he qualified for an automatic extension of time to respond to the FAC. (Code Civ. Proc., § 430.41 (a)(2) [“the demurring party shall not be subject to default during the period of the extension”].) No default was taken during the relevant time period. The issue is therefore immaterial to the present demurrer. While the Court agrees that the meet and confer efforts were insufficient in that Mr. Hogge's counsel did...

Excerpt: ...s motion is granted. California Code of Civil Procedure (“CCP”) § 473 (b) provides in relevant part: CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 36 HEARING DATE: 07/26/21 ‐ 2 ‐ “The court may, upon any terms as may be just, 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 ne...

Excerpt: ... of leave to amend, they must appear at the hearing with any specific facts that could change the results discussed below. Background Plaintiffs own land in Lafayette (“Land”), which they acquired from John Barsell Jr. ("Barsell") in September 2005. (SAC, ¶¶1‐9.) Plaintiffs allege, on information and belief, that in 1974, as a condition of approval of a subdivision request by Barsell, Barsell agreed to a ten‐year moratorium on developin...

Excerpt: ... case shall be dismissed against Defendant Zeph Rose. Plaintiff has been designated a vexatious litigant. He filed this case after obtaining permission from the Presiding Judge. When giving Plaintiff permission to file this case, the Presiding Judge ordered Plaintiff to post a $1,000. Now, Defendant Rose seeks an order requiring Plaintiff to post an additional security in the amount of at least $75,000. Procedural Objections Plaintiff argues that...

Excerpt: ...e to file the action from among the available options. Code Civ. Proc. §395.5 (See Sea World, Inc. v. Superior Court (1970) 13 Cal.App.3d 100, 103 (discussing disjunctive nature of former constitutional provision, now enacted as statute in Code Civ. Proc. section 395.5, giving plaintiff a choice of bringing an action in any county that will satisfy one of the available venue options). There is a presumption that the county in which the plaintiff...

Excerpt: ...rt provided the correct statutory citation, along with two additional cases supporting the Court's ruling. After oral argument was complete, the Court amended its tentative ruling to add these legal authorities and granted the Defendant's motion for a protective order. CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 36 HEARING DATE: 07/12/21 ‐ 3 ‐ Plaintiff has now filed a motion for reconsideration of the Court's ruling on the p...

Excerpt: ...ial date in this case. On January 25, 2021, the Court gave notice to counsel that the trial was continued to August 30, 2021 as the department was unavailable on August 9, 2021. On June 7, 2021, Counsel for Defendant moved to continue the trial claiming that certain Defendant witnesses are scheduled to be in a trial in Butte County which is scheduled on the same date as this matter. Plaintiff opposes the motion to continue, asserting that the But...

Excerpt: ...ackground Plaintiff Adriana Valdivia and Defendant Armando Ayala each own an undivided one‐half interest, as tenants in common, in Subject Property located at 935 Kilkenny Way in Pinole. Plaintiff alleges she was compelled to vacate the Property on May 15, 2019. Defendant has occupied the Property exclusively since Plaintiff vacated the Property. Before this action was CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 36 HEARING DATE...

Excerpt: ...as injured while he was participating in a nuisance abatement project in the City of Richmond. The owner of the property had hired plaintiff's employer to remove vehicles, boats, and sheds from the property. At the time, two public safety officers from the City of Richmond were present as well, “securing and rendering safe” the abatement project, specifically with respect to “unauthorized occupant issues.” Plaintiff was shot by a loaded a...

Excerpt: ...oss‐Complainants”) Cross Complaint (“XC”) for (1) breach of contract, (2) breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing, (3) rescission, (4) lost profits, and (5) elder abuse. Cross‐ Defendant moves for summary adjudication pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure § 437c against the causes of action for (3) rescission and (5) elder abuse on several grounds. For the following reasons, the Court grants‐in‐part and denies‐in‐pa...

Excerpt: ...�� which occurred before the two falls shown near the check stand in the video that Safeway produced. (See Undisputed Material Fact No. 8; Disputed Material Fact Nos. 1, 2, 9, 11; Nikolskaya Declaration; Discharge Summary from John Muir Medical Center attached as Ex. B to the N. Shahan Decl.; the video that Safeway produced; and the documents showing that Safeway did not produce all video that plaintiff requested.) Based on all the evidence the c...

Excerpt: ...sta Deputy Sheriff Officer Kevin Escover responded to an automobile collision in Danville at approximately 8:09 p.m. Petitioner Michael Cho's vehicle had veered into a parked car. Petitioner admitted to drinking three glasses of wine prior to driving. According to Officer Escover, Petitioner showed objective signs of intoxication and performed poorly on the field sobriety tests. The preliminary alcohol screening (PAS; roadside breathalyzer) showe...

Excerpt: ....” (Further Opposition, filed on 5‐28‐21, p. 3, Part II‐B.) The matter now before the Court is titled as follows on the computer docket: “SPECIAL SET HEARING ON: RECONSIDERATION OF MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SET BY JUDGE BURCH.” It would appear that no party has a pending motion before the Court, either a motion for reconsideration or a motion for summary judgment. Rather, the parties have filed papers in response to Judge Burch's in...

Excerpt: ...nst their landlords for claimed habitability issues. CONTRA COSTA SUPERIOR COURT MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT: 36 HEARING DATE: 06/14/21 ‐ 4 ‐ The landlords are a married couple, Dimas Cruz and Maria Vasquez. Upon appearing in this action, Cruz filed a cross‐complaint for indemnity and damages against his wife, Vasquez, on the theory that she was the one responsible for managing this rental property and she should have sole responsibilit...

Excerpt: ...ful foreclosure; (5) constructive eviction; (6) breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing; (7) violation of Bus & Prof. Code § 17200 et seq.; and (8) declaratory relief. Defendant demurs to the SAC pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure (“CCP”) § 430.10 on the grounds that Plaintiffs lack standing and fail to allege facts sufficient to state a cause of action. For the following reasons, the Demurrer is continued until August 30, 20...

Excerpt: ...filing of a cross‐complaint. Plaintiff has requested and the Court takes judicial notice of the Registry of Actions in this matter, the Legislative Committee Commentary to California Assembly Bill codified by law as Civil Code 1952.3. Cal. Evid. Code §§ 452, 453. A cross‐complaint is only prohibited so long as the tenant remains in possession of the premises. See Gonzales v. Gem Properties (1974) 37 Cal.App.3d 1029, 1034 Code Civ. Proc., §...

Excerpt: ... 2018. Plaintiffs include as defendants the seller, Smurthwaite; Smurthwaite's real estate broker; and the escrow company, Fidelity. Smurthwaite cross‐complains against Fidelity and others. His causes of action include indemnity against all cross‐defendants, as well as specific claims against Fidelity alone: breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, and, in his Ninth Cause of Action, Negligence. The latter three causes of action are all b...

Excerpt: ...based on the failure to state a cause of action and on uncertainty. The demurrer does not specify whether it is addressed to the entire complaint or to a particular cause of action as required by California Rules of Court, rule 3.1320(a). The memorandum and meet and confer letter did specify the challenged causes of action and there appears to be no prejudice to Plaintiff who addressed each challenged cause of action in his opposition. Therefore,...

Excerpt: ...led and served on or before May 13, 2021. Background Plaintiffs own land in Lafayette (“Land”), which they acquired from John Barsell Jr. ("Barsell") in September 2005. (FAC, ¶¶1‐9.) Plaintiffs allege, on information and belief, that in 1974, as a condition of approval of a subdivision request by Barsell, Barsell agreed to a ten‐year moratorium on developing the Land. (FAC, ¶10.) They allege Barsell never succeeded in subdividing the L...

Excerpt: ...sponse using Judicial Counsel form EA‐120. Both forms are in the format of a declaration under penalty of perjury by the party. The plain language of the Elder Abuse Act authorizes a trial court to issue a restraining order against any individual who has engaged in abusive conduct, as defined by statute, toward a person age 65 or older or a “dependent adult.” On the face of his Request, Petitioner acknowledges that he is 50 years old. “De...

Excerpt: ... Cucho struck the bus head‐on on San Pablo Road, injuring Ms. Ifraz. She sued the driver Mr. Cucho and defendant Mr. Pacahualo who was the registered owner of the vehicle. (References in this tentative ruling to "Mr. Cucho's truck" or "Mr. Cucho's vehicle" are for convenience and refer only to the vehicle he was driving, recognizing the vehicle was apparently titled to Mr. Cucho's father.) Ms. Ifraz added Scavengers as a defendant by a Doe amen...

Excerpt: ... and on a showing that “there is a reasonable possibility that the moving defendant will obtain judgment in the action”. (Code of Civil Procedure §1030(a).) If the defendant meets both criteria, the court “shall order that the plaintiff file the undertaking in an amount specified in the court's order as security for costs and attorney's fees.” (Code of Civil Procedure §1030(c).) The Court's finding on whether the defendant has a reasona...