Excerpt: ...urt assumes the parties' familiarity with the background of this long-running matter. This ruling sets forth only the facts necessary to dispose of the present motion. Through this motion, Cross-Defendants seek to recover an additional $926,000 in attorney's fees, which are broken down into three categories: “(1) attorney's fees incurred by Child and Amberhill, but not previously awarded, defending against claims concerning the SRA and claims f...

Excerpt: ...l notice is GRANTED. Defendant has filed evidentiary objections (ROA 73) to Plaintiff's declaration in support of her opposition (ROA 68). Objections 1 and 3 are SUSTAINED. Objections 2 and 4 are OVERRULED. GROUNDS FOR RULING This is a putative wage-and-hour class/PAGA action in which Plaintiff alleges she and other employees of Defendant were regularly forced to work off the clock and were denied meal and rest breaks. She brings substantive clai...

Excerpt: ... seal. A court may order a record to be filed under seal only if it expressly finds facts establishing: 1) There exists an overriding interest that overcomes the right of public access to the record; 2) The overriding interest supports sealing the record; 3) A substantial probability exists that the overriding interest will be prejudiced if the record is not sealed; 4) The proposed sealing is narrowly tailored; and 5) No less restrictive means ex...

Excerpt: ...orney's fees. Each party shall be permitted to file one supplemental brief, not longer than 8 pages, by January 17, 2020. No replies to the supplemental briefs will be permitted. The continued hearing will take place on January 31, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. in Department CX104. Grounds for Ruling After a jury entered a verdict in Plaintiff's favor in this trade secret dispute, Defendants prevailed on a motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict. Def...

Excerpt: ...quest to strike Plaintiffs' class allegations is DENIED. Defendants failed to file a properly noticed motion to strike the class allegations under CCP § 435, instead requesting such relief only in the memorandum in support of their demurrer. As to the 4 th, 5 th and 6 th causes of action, Plaintiffs have sufficiently alleged violations under the applicable Labor Code provisions. The fact that Plaintiffs provide no specifics supporting those clai...

Excerpt: ...RANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART as follows: 1. The Clerk is ordered to permanently seal the documents filed at ROA 1501, 1502, 1516, and 1517. 2. Cross-Complainant First Foundation Bank (“FFB”) is ordered to file public, redacted versions of the foregoing documents. 3. As to ROAs 1502 and 1517 (each a Declaration of Edward O. Morales), FFB is to file public, redacted versions that omit Exhibits 9, 10, 11, 12, 21, and 22, and redact Exhibits...

Excerpt: ...2019. If a revised settlement agreement and/or class notice is submitted, a redline showing all changes, deletions and additions must be submitted as well. As to the Settlement: 1. Counsel declares that the motion and supporting papers will be served on the LWDA (Quintilone Decl., ¶ 11), but there is no proof of service. 2. Please provide copies of each named Plaintiff's prefiling letter to the LWDA so the court can evaluate compliance with the ...

Excerpt: ...proposed cross-complaint attached to the Lemen Declaration as Exhibit A on or before September 20, 2019. Grounds for Ruling Plaintiffs are three former employees of defendant Uni-Caps, LLC, who were terminated on March 6, 2014, after they complained to Defendant and the DFEH about alleged FEHA violations by defendant. Plaintiffs bring this action alleging defendant violated wage and hour laws and discriminated against plaintiffs who are of Korean...

Excerpt: ... The subpoenas are QUASHED in all other respects. This is a PAGA-only action in which Plaintiff, on behalf of herself and other aggrieved employees of Rubio's, alleges violations of Labor Code provisions relating to minimum wages, meal and rest breaks, wage statements, waiting time and recordkeeping. On July 12, 2019, Rubio's served identical subpoenas on two of Plaintiff's former employers, Forever 21 and K-Mart. The subpoenas each seek: [A]ny a...

Excerpt: ...y adjudicated against him. Similarly, named plaintiffs Rodriguez and Gama settled their PAGA claims on an individual basis and are excluded from the class. The only settling plaintiff who has a potential PAGA claim is Kles. While counsel has provided Kles's letter to the LWDA in a supplemental declaration, this does not change the fact that Kles, unlike the Rodriguez plaintiffs, never filed a complaint that included a PAGA claim against R.J. Nobl...

Excerpt: ...ng Center, Nabhan Simaan and Yola Simaan have agreed to indemnify Respondents for any fees that may be awarded to Petitioner. Grounds for Ruling I. Evidentiary Matters Real Parties' unopposed request for judicial notice is GRANTED. Items 2-4 of Petitioner's request for judicial notice are GRANTED. The request is DENIED as to Item 1, the terms of service of OneLegal, a legal services provider, obtained from the OneLegal website. This document does...

Excerpt: ...2019. If a revised settlement agreement and/or class notice is submitted, a redline showing all changes, deletions, and additions must be submitted as well. As to the Settlement: 1. The Court previously denied certification in this matter on the grounds that a class was not ascertainable and that commonality was lacking. From the Court's review of the papers, the only apparent change from the November 2017 denial of certification to today is that...

Excerpt: ...A.'s Motion for Further Direction Under the Court's October 26 and November 18,2018 Orders Motions #1 and #3 Only are Continued to 9/13/19 at 9:00am in CX104 by Stipulation. Motion #2 is Going Forward. Defendant San Miguel Equities, LLC's motion to seal Exhibit B to the Declaration of Greg Gilroy, conditionally lodged under seal on July 29, 2019 (ROA 1512), is DENIED. The clerk is ordered to file this document in the public record. On July 29, 20...

Excerpt: ...y Ford cases for which she was designated as an expert witness. In addition, as the Court stated on the record at the August 23, 2019 hearing on Plaintiffs' motion for attorney's fees, Plaintiffs are entitled to recover the fees incurred in successfully opposing Ford's motion to tax costs. Plaintiffs are therefore awarded $5,015 in attorney's fees. Plaintiffs have filed objections to the Declaration of Daniell K. Newman. Objections 1, 2 and 4 are...

Excerpt: ...) He brings a putative wage- and-hour class action on behalf of all non-exempt employees who worked for Defendant at any time in the four years before the case was filed. (Id., ¶ 4.) The complaint alleges six causes of action: principal claims for overtime violations, meal period violations, and rest period violations, as well as derivative claims for wage statement violations, UCL violations, and PAGA. Defendant demurs on two grounds: that the ...

Excerpt: ...scription information from another source. However, insofar as Defendants seek to prevent Plaintiffs from seeking information about Ms. Callaway's alleged use of pain- killing narcotics through other means (i.e., at her upcoming deposition), the Court declines to rule at this time. GROUNDS FOR RULING I. Factual Background This legal malpractice action centers on legal advice Ms. Callaway provided concerning the structuring of Plaintiffs' direct c...

Excerpt: ...) He brings a putative wage- and-hour class action on behalf of all non-exempt employees who worked for Defendant at any time in the four years before the case was filed. (Id., ¶ 4.) The complaint alleges six causes of action: principal claims for overtime violations, meal period violations, and rest period violations, as well as derivative claims for wage statement violations, UCL violations, and PAGA. Defendant demurs on two grounds: that the ...

Excerpt: ...luded 538 employees, but Defendant's discovery responses indicated that 34% of the class was “severed,” leaving 355 employees. Counsel's damages analysis is based on workweeks, and the number of workweeks is determined in reference to these 355 employees. However, per the amended Joint Stipulation of Settlement (Supp. Campbell Decl., Exhs. 1, 3), the class still numbers 538. (Id., § 3.04(e).) Does the class actually number 355 rather than 53...

Excerpt: ...scription information from another source. However, insofar as Defendants seek to prevent Plaintiffs from seeking information about Ms. Callaway's alleged use of pain- killing narcotics through other means (i.e., at her upcoming deposition), the Court declines to rule at this time. GROUNDS FOR RULING I. Factual Background This legal malpractice action centers on legal advice Ms. Callaway provided concerning the structuring of Plaintiffs' direct c...

Excerpt: ...4 to be considered at the same time as Defendant Ford's motion to tax costs. Evidentiary Objections I. Plaintiffs' Objections Plaintiffs have filed six objections to the Declaration of Daniell K. Newman. Objection No. 1 is SUSTAINED on relevance, foundation and hearsay grounds and OVERRULED on all other grounds. The Court has not considered Exhibit 1 to the Newman Declaration in ruling upon this motion. Objections No. 2-6 are OVERRULED. II. Ford'...

Excerpt: ... failed to exhaust administrative remedies as to Supercuts. Evidentiary Issues I. Defendants' Request for Judicial Notice Defendants seek judicial notice of Plaintiffs' LWDA letters. (RJN, Exs. A-B.) The basis for this request is CCP § 452(c), which permits judicial notice of “official acts” of a government agency. While Plaintiffs' letters to the LWDA may no doubt found in the LWDA's files, they are not “acts” of the LWDA. However, as P...

Excerpt: ...ntiff's claims against Defendants, reached at a mandatory settlement conference on April 13, 2018. In consideration for Plaintiff dismissing his case and providing a general release of his claims, Defendants, jointly and severally, agreed to pay Plaintiff a total of $36,600 according to the following schedule: 1. $5,000 on or before May 14, 2018; 2. $5,000 on or before November 14, 2019; 3. $5,000 on or before May 14, 2021; and 4. Beginning June ...

Excerpt: ...nt initial case management statement filed on August 2, 2019. While AAG objects to this request, CCP § 453 requires the Court to take judicial notice upon a request that complies with the statute, as Plaintiffs' request does here. AAG's objection is OVERRULED and the request for judicial notice is GRANTED, as the case management statement is properly noticeable under CCP § 452(d). AAG correctly notes, however, that the Court may not take judici...

Excerpt: ... The demurrer is OVERRULED as to Plaintiff's seventh cause of action for violation of Labor Code § 226(a). 3. The demurrer is OVERRULED AS MOOT as to Plaintiff's eleventh cause of action for PAGA, and this claim is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE at Plaintiff's request. Defendant's motion to strike portions of Plaintiff's complaint is GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART as set forth below: 1. As to item 1 in the notice of motion, the motion to strike...

Excerpt: ...onnie Ortloff). (ROA 65.) Defendant's motion was based on an arbitration agreement contained in storage unit leases. While the Non- Signatory Plaintiffs were not party to these leases, the other named plaintiffs (“Signatory Plaintiffs”) were parties to the leases, and both the Signatory Plaintiffs and the Non- Signatory Plaintiffs alike sued for breach of the leases. The Court ordered the Signatory Plaintiffs to arbitration based on the arbit...

Excerpt: ...te Aerospace, Inc. is DENIED as set forth below. Adams Rite's Opposition Plaintiff argues that the Court should disregard the opposition because of late service. Because Plaintiff had the opportunity to brief a full reply on the merits and declined Adams Rite's offer to continue the hearing, the Court will exercise its discretion to consider Adams Rite's opposition. (See Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1300(d).) Grounds for Ruling I. Factual Backgrou...

Excerpt: ... on T&J's property is DENIED. EVIDENTIARY AND PROCEDURAL ISSUES I. T&J's Request for Judicial Notice T&J requests judicial notice of four documents, attached to T&J's evidence as Exhibits 1-4: 1. The Court's tentative ruling of December 21, 2018 2. Plaintiff's FAC, filed January 8, 2019 3. Notice of Errata to Plaintiff's FAC, filed January 9, 2019 4. ACI 318 Table 4.3.1, contained on the second page of Bondy, Code Requirements for Sulfate Durabil...

Excerpt: ... below: 1. Cross-Complainant Sean Bose's class allegations are dismissed without prejudice. 2. The first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth causes of action in Bose's FAXC are ordered to arbitration on an individual basis. 3. The seventh cause of action (UCL violations) is ordered to arbitration on an individual basis insofar as Bose claims unjust enrichment, disgorgement or restitution. The seventh ...

Excerpt: ...ings as they currently stand. At the hearing on this motion, however, Plaintiff shall state on the record whether he waives his claims for underpaid wages and any other individualized relief. If Plaintiff agrees to such a waiver, then the motion will be denied. I. Factual Background Plaintiff was employed by TIC-AC as a Service Technician and Assistant Service Manager at two TIC-affiliated apartment properties in Mission Valley, California. (Comp...

Excerpt: ... for Lack of Subject Matter Jurisdiction, or in the Alternative, to Dismiss or Stay in Light of the Primary Jurisdiction of the State Water Board Sabic Innovative Plastics US, LLC's and General Electric Company's Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Subject Matter Jurisdiction, or in the Alternative, to Dismiss or Stay in Light of the Primary Jurisdiction of the State Water Board, and the joinder in that motion by ICI Americas, Inc. and Beatrice Compani...

Excerpt: ...to the consideration of such motions in the Individual Actions. Coyote Grill's request to disqualify Jose Garay, APLC (the “Garay firm”) in this action, made for the first time on reply, is DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE to refiling a properly noticed motion to disqualify. Grounds for Ruling I. Requests for Judicial Notice Coyote Grill requests judicial notice of various documents filed in support of both its opening papers and its reply. (See ROA ...

Excerpt: ...ck's desire to take discovery from non-party Sound Point relating to an offering of securities by Gruppo Waste Italia S.p.A. (“Waste Italia”). Rimrock purchased certain of those securities from Defendants and alleges that Jeffries' representations made in connection with the marketing of the securities violated California's Blue Sky laws. In its moving papers, Rimrock states that in the course of Waste Italia's concordato proceedings (the Ita...

Excerpt: ...s of concern. Any supplemental briefing shall be filed on or before September 3, 2019. If a revised settlement agreement and/or class notice is submitted, a redline showing all changes, deletions, and additions must be submitted as well. As to the Settlement: 1. The class period for Laborers begins on December 20, 2012 because, per the Rodriguez FAC, the parties entered into a tolling agreement on December 20, 2016. Per the Kles complaint, an ide...

Excerpt: ...fenses to be bifurcated, not the propriety of bifurcation itself. Insofar as the motion concerns Defendants Gary Kanter and Denise Stiles-Kanter's (referred to as “Gary” and “Denise” for clarity) fourth affirmative defense (entitled “Indemnity and Contribution”) that Armony's claims are barred by operation of Paragraph 9 of a January 2011 agreement between Armony and Gary (the “Mediation Agreement”), the Court is inclined to treat...

Excerpt: ...ntly stand. At the hearing on this motion, however, Plaintiff shall state on the record whether he waives his claims for underpaid wages and any other individualized relief. If Plaintiff agrees to such a waiver, then the motion will be denied. I. Factual Background Plaintiff was employed by TIC-AC as a Service Technician and Assistant Service Manager at two TIC-affiliated apartment properties in Mission Valley, California. (Compl. (ROA 2), ¶ 6; ...

Excerpt: ...timony of nine Ford employees taken in other matters. The Court has not yet ruled on this motion, although in other related cases pending in Orange County Superior Court, substantially identical motions in limine have resulted in some, but not all, of this testimony being held inadmissible. The present dispute focuses on the writ petition pending before the Court of Appeal, Second District, Division One in Berroteran v. Superior Court (B296639) (...

Excerpt: ...owner's insurance policies. Plaintiff alleges that his home was damaged by smoke and soot as a result of the Holy Fire in August 2018. (Compl. ¶¶ 15-16.) Plaintiff does not allege that his home was actually damaged by flames, only smoke, soot, etc. His homeowner's insurance policy has a Wildfire Smoke Sublimit that limits coverage to smoke damage from wildfires to $2,500 if a claim is not made within 45 days. (Compl. Ex. 1, at 5.) Plaintiff all...

Excerpt: ...n for attorney's fees as the prevailing party at trial, pending the outcome of related proceedings instituted by Newport Crest in Plaintiff's bankruptcy case. (See ROA 1464.) On March 13, 2018, the Court, having been informed that the bankruptcy case was pending before the Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel, extended the stay “until a ruling is made by the Bankruptcy Court Appellate Panel.” (ROA 1496.) Meanwhile, on January 22, 2019, th...

Excerpt: ... was filed and electronically served on June 4, 2019 (ROA 1065), Plaintiff's opposition was not filed until July 10, 2019 (ROA 1097.) The opposition was due 10 days after the JNOV papers were filed, or June 14, 2019. (See CCP §§ 629(b), 659a.) Plaintiff's opposition was thus 26 days late. This is more than sufficient reason for the Court to refuse to consider the opposition at all (see Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1300(d)), but in light of the p...

Excerpt: ... is submitted, a redline version showing all changes, deletions and additions shall be submitted as well. As set forth below, the Court continues to have serious concerns about how carefully the settlement materials were drafted and whether the settlement is reasonable. Furthermore, the Court notes that a number of key items in its prior minute order on this matter (ROA 83) appear not to have been addressed at all in Plaintiff's supplemental brie...

Excerpt: ... set aside said default earlier, was caused by his own mistake. Counsel admits that he mistakenly failed to draft a stipulation to set aside the default, that he misunderstood a February 2019 request for dismissal to apply to his client, and that he failed to follow up with WRW's counsel on the need for a stipulation or a proposed answer. (Arsenian Decl. ¶¶ 13-14.) In light of counsel's admission of fault, relief from default is mandatory, not ...

Excerpt: ...cond, third, fifth and sixth causes of action are time-barred, summary adjudication is GRANTED as to the first and second causes of action (negligence and breach of fiduciary duty) and DENIED as to the remaining causes of action (fraud, equitable indemnity and contribution). In light of this ruling on Issue No. 6, the motion for summary adjudication is DENIED AS MOOT as to Issues No. 1 and 2. The remainder of Cross-Defendants' motion for summary ...

Excerpt: ...y the California Labor Code, including, inter alia, section 226; i. Whether Defendants kept complete and accurate payroll records as required by the California Labor Code, including, inter alia, section 1174(d).” 3. Paragraphs 33 and 34 of the complaint, in their entirety. 4. Paragraphs 42 and 43 of the complaint, in their entirety. 5. At page 10, line 18: “or penalty.” 6. Paragraphs 57 and 58 of the complaint, in their entirety. 7. At page...

Excerpt: ...laint (“SAC”) of Plaintiff T-12 Three, LLC is GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART for the reasons set forth below. The Court also DENIES Turner's request for attorney's fees. The Court recognizes that the amendments to the SAC go beyond the scope permitted in the April 26, 2019 minute order granting T-12 leave to amend. As the Court has previously stated, however, motions relating to the pleadings in this matter that elevate form over substanc...

Excerpt: ... non-exempt employees who worked for Mitchell International, Inc., within the State of California at any time during the period from April 5, 2013, to a date to be determined based on the notice and opt-out period. The Court granted certification only as to Plaintiff's seventh and tenth causes of action (Labor Code § 226(a) and Business & Professions Code § 17200), and only on the theory that wage statements provided by Defendant to putative cl...

Excerpt: ...tion project in San Diego. 5 th Rock now seeks to file a third amended cross-complaint that adds a Business & Professions Code § 17200 based on the same overbilling allegations. A. Relation Back While the Court has broad discretion to grant leave to amend, it cannot grant leave to amend to add a cause of action on which the statute of limitations has run. The statute of limitations for a § 17200 claim is four years (Bus. & Prof. Code, §17208),...

Excerpt: ... is GRANTED. Plaintiffs seek to compel a response to their Special Interrogatory No. 3, which provides: IDENTIFY each and every AGGRIEVED EMPLOYEE employed by YOU during the RELEVANT TIME PERIOD. (As used in these interrogatories, the terms "DEFENDANT," "DEFENDANTS," "YOU," or "YOUR," all mean and refer to Defendant IEC CORPORATION WHICH WILL DO BUSINESS IN CALIFORNIA AS INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION CORPORATION, and shall also include all current or f...

Excerpt: ...ckson Lewis, P.C. are jointly ordered to pay sanctions to Plaintiff in the amounts set forth in the tentative rulings by August 12, 2019. Defendant moves to compel arbitration of Plaintiff's claims on an individual basis and to dismiss or stay the remainder of the case pending the outcome of the arbitration proceeding. As an initial matter, although neither party appears to have addressed the issue, the Court notes that Plaintiff's PAGA cause of ...

Excerpt: ...shall be filed on or before August 14, 2019. If a revised settlement agreement and/or notice is submitted, a redline showing all changes, deletions, and additions must be submitted as well. 1. The Settlement and Release (“SAR”) recites, and all parties agree, that there are 30 aggrieved employees. Plaintiffs' moving papers and Defendants' joinder papers say that Defendants determined this to be the number, yet there is no explanation of how i...

Excerpt: ... well. 1. In its May 3, 2019 minute order, the Court noted that the aggrieved employees' release “may not extend to future claims by aggrieved employees for wages and other ‘victim-specific' remedies, even those that can be characterized as part of a ‘civil penalty' recoverable under Labor Code § 558 and that are recovered as part of the settlement of this action.” (ROA 22.) Section 4 of the revised settlement agreement nonetheless relea...