Excerpt: ...eedings. The Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Division Three shall be the reviewing court. I. Factual and Procedural Background The Included Actions each arise from the alleged wage-and-hour practices of entities that own or operate Watermark retirement communities (collectively, “Watermark”). All three Included Actions involve similar allegations of standard violations, such as meal and rest break violations, failure to pay for all hours wo...

Excerpt: ...fore September 17, 2021. Ortiz's motions for class certification and terminating sanctions, previously taken off calendar, will be set for a date to be determined by the Court and the parties at the hearing on this motion. Based on the papers submitted in connection with this motion, the Court expects Defendants may file a motion to enforce class action waivers in arbitration agreements signed by a portion of the putative class. The Court will no...

Excerpt: ...s objections to the declaration of Susan Brandt-Hawley are SUSTAINED on foundation grounds. The Court has not considered any exhibit to the Brandt-Hawley declaration. In addition, the Court has not considered the declaration of Philip D. Kohn to the extent it seeks to introduce new evidence on reply. This matter concerns the City's revised Historic Preservation Program, which amends portions of the City's general plan and zoning code. Specificall...

Excerpt: ...bjections 1 and 7 to the Pham Declaration. The Court declines to rule on the remaining objections to the Pham Declaration. (CCP § 437c(q).) The Court OVERRULES all objections to the Knypstra Declaration. Cardenas's Request for Judicial Notice is GRANTED. I. Factual Background A. The Underlying Lawsuit This action concerns a hotel development in Buena Park. BA Hotel & Resort, LLC originally purchased from the City the property on which the hotel ...

Excerpt: ...s defined as “All individuals who were employed as non-exempt, hourly-paid employees by Defendant in California and worked at least one shift greater than 3.5 hours in length at any time from September 30, 2007 through the date of class certification.” Broadly speaking, the classwide theory of liability was as follows: Defendant's 2008 rest break policy was illegal as written, in that it required employees to remain on premises. While Defenda...

Excerpt: ...since-withdrawn motion for leave to intervene. Between January 2020 and January 2021, Vazquez, Juaregui and Santos filed three separate lawsuits with a PAGA component. Vazquez, Juaregui and Defendants informally negotiated a resolution, eventually participating in a mediation in November 2020, where their cases settled in principle. The formal settlement agreement eventually executed by the parties covered a wider variety of predicate Labor Code ...

Excerpt: ...Hotel purchased the Hotel Property from the City in 2016 for $1,565,000. (UMF 1-2.) The Hotel Property was encumbered by a recorded Development Agreement. The Development Agreement contained a purchase option that gave the City the right to repurchase the Hotel Property for $1,565,000 if BA Hotel defaulted on the Development Agreement. (UMF 3, 8.) In 2017, BA Hotel purchased the adjacent Rear Property from the City for $1,285,000. (UMF 10-11.) BA...

Excerpt: ...VERRULED, except for Objection No. 10, which is SUSTAINED on foundation grounds. OCTA's evidentiary objections are OVERRULED. Because OCTA's motion is opposed by Defendants, the standard of review is set forth in CCP § 1255.410(d)(2): If the motion is opposed by a defendant or occupant within 30 days of service, the court may make an order for possession of the property upon consideration of the relevant facts and any opposition, and upon comple...

Excerpt: ...anding to pursue their claims in federal court, Article III standing rules do not apply in California courts. The Court found Plaintiffs had standing to pursue their first and third causes of action in California courts, but lacked standing to pursue their second cause of action. The Court also found Plaintiffs were within the zone of interests of persons entitled to sue under the FCRA. After the Court's ruling, the United States Supreme Court ha...

Excerpt: ...proposed notice is submitted, a redline version showing all changes, deletions and additions must be submitted as well. In addition, Plaintiffs must provide proof of service of any revised settlement agreement and supplemental papers on the LWDA. As to the Settlement: 1. Please provide a copy of all pre-filing letters to the LWDA. 2. Please provide proof of service of the original moving papers on the LWDA. 3. Plaintiff's individual release has c...

Excerpt: ... Trial Court Negligence Ruling Defendants operate or formerly operated the 2040 Site. In 2012, numerous defendants, including the moving Defendants here, moved for summary adjudication on the District's negligence claim on statute of limitations grounds. Judge Stock granted the motion as to most of the moving defendants, finding the District was on inquiry notice of groundwater contamination long before filing suit—for decades as to some defend...

Excerpt: ..., is GRANTED subject to one condition discussed below. Following review of the papers, the Court finds the parties' settlement to be “fair to those affected.” (Williams v. Superior Court (2017) 3 Cal.5th 531, 549.) The Court also approves of the current version of the proposed notice. The notice actually sent to aggrieved employees may not be in a smaller font size than the notice provided to the Court. Before the Court can approve the settle...

Excerpt: ...murrer is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND as to the 2021-22 academic year, but this is without prejudice to Plaintiffs moving for leave to amend if future events should support a claim. 2. The demurrer is SUSTAINED WITH LEAVE TO AMEND as to the second cause of action for unjust enrichment. 3. The demurrer is OVERRULED as to the third and fourth causes of action, for CLRA and UCL violations. Plaintiffs shall have until August 20, 2021 to file a f...

Excerpt: ...act returns a verdict that awards CashCall actual damages and finds Katten, Callaway, or both guilty of malice, oppression or fraud. (See Civ. Code § 3295(d).) MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS CashCall's motion to compel the production of documents reviewed by Defendants' expert Brad Rustin is DENIED. CashCall seeks an order compelling Defendants to turn over certain materials (the “Withheld Materials”) reviewed by their expert, Brad...

Excerpt: ...e Court therefore orders Plaintiff's individual claims to arbitration. The only dispute is about whether the PAGA claim should be stayed pending the completion of arbitration. Relying on CCP § 1281.4 and Franco v. Arakelian Enterprises, Inc. (2015) 234 Cal.App.4th 947, Defendant argues a stay is appropriate because the individual claims and the PAGA claim require the resolution of overlapping issues. In particular, the resolution of Defendant's ...

Excerpt: ... LLC and OC Burger Boys, LLC is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART as set forth below. Defendants are ordered to provide further responses as set forth below by August 2, 2021. I. RFPs 31-34 (directed to both Defendants) RFPs 31-34 appear to be identical as to both Defendants. They seek emails in which Business Managers either reported working more than an hour of time off-site or sought pre-approval to work overtime. Defendants' timekeeping poli...

Excerpt: ...s and Production to Plaintiffs' First Set of Requests for Production to Defendant Todd Spitzer in His Official Capacity as Orange County District Attorney, in Place of Anthony J. Rackauckas Plaintiffs People for the Ethical Operation of Prosecutors and Law Enforcement (“P.E.O.P.L.E.”), Bethany Webb, Theresa Smith and Tina Jackson move to compel further responses to requests for production from Defendants Todd Spitzer, sued in his official cap...

Excerpt: ...or a stay is GRANTED. This case shall be stayed until BOFE's investigation, and any related proceedings before the Labor Commissioner, are resolved. EVIDENTIARY MATTERS Defendants' unopposed request for judicial notice is GRANTED. The Court rules on Defendants' objections to the Lee Declaration as follows: Objection No. 1 is OVERRULED. Objections No. 2-4 are SUSTAINED on hearsay grounds. I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND These coordinated acti...

Excerpt: ...ver attorney's fees and costs associated with the present motion by no later than July 21, 2021. Retrolock's request for additional sanctions is DENIED. I. Factual Background This case involves a contract dispute arising from the construction of a hotel in Buena Park. Greenland was the general contractor, Retrolock was a subcontractor, and Hotel was the project owner. Retrolock alleges that Greenland failed to make payments for work performed, an...

Excerpt: ...lemental briefing shall be filed on or before July 26, 2021. If a revised settlement agreement and/or proposed notice is submitted, a redline version showing all changes, deletions and additions must be submitted as well. In addition, Zimmers must provide proof of service of any revised settlement agreement and supplemental papers on the LWDA. Likewise, the motion for attorney fees brought by objector Mikhail Hutchins is continued from July 2, 20...

Excerpt: ...ic Substances Control (DTSC) separately demur to the fourth cause of action, for declaratory relief, of the third amended cross-complaint (3AXC) of Cross-Complainant Soco West, Inc. The demurrers are OVERRULED. Soco's request for judicial notice is DENIED as immaterial. (See Jordache Enterprises, Inc. v. Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison (1998) 18 Cal.4th 739, 748 fn. 6 [declining to take judicial notice of materials not “necessary, helpful, or relev...

Excerpt: ...med related to Stewart v. Arconic Global Fasteners & Rings, Inc, OCSC No. 18-968137, which is currently pending in CX-103, and (2) transferred to CX-103. The alternative request for a stay is GRANTED, but this ruling is without prejudice to being reconsidered following transfer of this case to CX-103. Defendants' unopposed request for judicial notice is GRANTED. Defendants are reminded that unpublished California Court of Appeal opinions may not ...

Excerpt: ...aw will govern” by applying the “governmental interest test, which sets out a three-step inquiry: ‘First, the court determines whether the relevant law of each of the potentially affected jurisdictions with regard to the particular issue in question is the same or different. Second, if there is a difference, the court examines each jurisdiction's interest in the application of its own law under the circumstances of the particular case to de...

Excerpt: ...ent and important supporting authority to single-spaced footnotes, which is the equivalent of filing an overlong brief without permission. For what it is worth, for this Court, the use of such lengthy footnotes results in disjointed briefs that are both difficult to follow and which obfuscate their basic arguments. Defendant's request for judicial notice (ROA 1226) is DENIED. Unpublished California Court of Appeal decisions may not be cited excep...

Excerpt: ...s set forth below, the City's demurrer is OVERRULED. PRELIMINARY MATTERS The City's unopposed request for judicial notice is GRANTED. In its reply, the City objects to consideration of the declaration of Susan Brandt-Hawley filed in support of Petitioners' opposition. (ROA 59.) This objection is SUSTAINED. “A declaration filed in opposition to a demurrer is ‘a nullity, of no purpose or effect whatever' in consideration of a demurrer.” (Kahn...

Excerpt: ... Callaway billed CashCall for work they had not performed. Specifically, as explained at ¶¶ 272-275, Katten and Callaway's answer to an earlier version of the complaint alleges that they relied heavily on CashCall's general counsel Dan Baren and Western Sky's outside counsel Cheryl Bogue for factual background and legal analysis that was later incorporated into Katten's opinion letters with little, if any, independent research or analysis. Neve...

Excerpt: ...am (“OCDNA”). Plaintiffs are professors of criminology at UC Irvine. For purposes of this demurrer, it is undisputed that they are both are residents of, and taxpayers in, Orange County. (Compl. (ROA 2), ¶¶ 7-8.) Plaintiffs allege that in 2004 voters passed Proposition 69, which expanded the bases for mandatory DNA collection by law enforcement in California. (Id., ¶ 14.) Shortly thereafter, the County, by Ordinance 07-003, established OCD...

Excerpt: ...ow, the motion is GRANTED. The Court notes that Callaway has filed a reply to CashCall's response to her separate statement. Such a document is improper, so the Court has not considered it. (See Nazir v. United Airlines, Inc. (2009) 178 Cal.App.4th 243, 249 [“Defendants' reply included, and properly, their response to plaintiff's additional disputed facts. Defendants' reply also included, not so properly, a 297–page ‘Reply Separate Statemen...

Excerpt: ...to C&D's photocopies of exhibit binders ($4,692.21). 4. The motion is GRANTED as to disputed filing and service fees. The full amount claimed ($4,587.87) is recoverable, but this total is broken down into the following amounts: a. C&D will recover $640.34 from Soco West and Brenntag jointly and severally, but not from Industrial Plaza and Martin. b. C&D will recover $208.84 from Industrial Plaza and Martin jointly and severally, but not from Soco...

Excerpt: .... As to the motion to strike: a. The motion is DENIED as to items 1-6 and 9 in the notice of motion. b. The motion is GRANTED WITH LEAVE TO AMEND as to items 7-8 in the notice of motion. At the hearing, the parties should be prepared to discuss the timing of a second amended complaint (SAC). The Court previously ordered a 2AC to be filed by June 7, 2021 in connection with Defendant Brian Baron's demurrer and motion to strike. Nishimoto's request ...

Excerpt: ...writ of attachment upon the filing of an undertaking in the amount of $10,000. Cardenas is to submit a proposed order on Judicial Council Form AT-120 that conforms to the foregoing. In the proposed order, the parcels of real property Cardenas seeks to attach should be identified by their full legal descriptions rather than just their APN numbers. In addition, the clerk is ordered to seal the Long Declaration (ROA 559). Exhibit D to the Long Decla...

Excerpt: ...g the outcome of the arbitrations. Because the arbitration agreement provides that questions of arbitrability are matters to be decided by the arbitrator, the Court does not consider Plaintiffs' argument that the claims at issue are not covered by the arbitration agreement. They remain free to raise that argument before the arbitrator. 2. In light of the ruling on the motion to compel arbitration, the motion for judgment on the pleadings is DENIE...

Excerpt: ...is in Department C26, but he has designated the case complex and stayed proceedings to permit the filing of this coordination petition. (Brady Decl. (ROA 5), Ex. C.) As a result of the stay, while Cardenas has been designated complex, it has not yet been transferred to a complex department by the Presiding Judge. I. Background A. Factual Allegations The Included Actions, whose complaints are nearly word-for-word identical except for details about...

Excerpt: ...ed to provide complete responses to every discovery request at issue, as set forth below. 2. The following facts/issues shall be taken as established against Defendants: a. That the tasks performed by Business Managers are governed by detailed uniform policies that prevent the exercise of independent judgment and discretion. b. That the four non-Business Manager hourly employees with the highest hourly rate at each of Defendants' restaurants in e...

Excerpt: ...mmary judgment or, in alternative, summary adjudication is DENIED. The Court declines to rule on the parties' evidentiary objections, which are immaterial to the disposition of the motion. (CCP § 437c(q).) I. Summary Judgment The only questions that may be litigated in a summary judgment motion are whether “the action has no merit” or “there is no defense to the action or proceeding.” (CCP § 437c(a)(1).) As a result, summary judgment ma...

Excerpt: ...the Court refers only to Baron.) The Court rules as follows: 1. The demurrer to the second cause of action is SUSTAINED WITH LEAVE TO AMEND. 2. As to the motion to strike: a. The motion is DENIED as to item 1 in the notice of motion. b. The motion is GRANTED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND as to item 2 in the notice of motion. c. The motion is GRANTED WITH LEAVE TO AMEND as to items 3-9 in the notice of motion. Black shall have until May 28, 2021 to file ...

Excerpt: ...e further code- compliant responses, including all responsive documents and without objection, by no later than May 24, 2021. (The Court limits the scope of responsive documents in two ways noted below.) Defendants and their counsel, Leonard W. Stitz, are jointly and severally sanctioned in the amount of $2,137.50. Plaintiff's requests for an order compelling Michael Harrah's deposition and a spoliation instruction are DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE to...

Excerpt: ... to CCP 425.16 Defendants Miriam J. Galindo, Jorge F. Galindo and Jorge Galindo Family Therapists & Associates, Inc.'s (collectively, “Moving Defendants”) special motion to strike the FAC of Plaintiff Christienne M. Black pursuant to CCP § 425.16 is GRANTED. Moving Defendants may seek fees and costs as permitted by statute. In light of this ruling, Moving Defendants' concurrently set demurrer and traditional motion to strike are moot. EVIDEN...

Excerpt: ...t to strike portions of the Weir Declaration is DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE to seeking the same relief prior to trial. I. Background This is a consumer class action involving alleged mislabeling of Bayer's One A Day gummy vitamins. As the Court of Appeal explained Plaintiff's theory, “despite the One A Day brand name, these particular vitamins require a daily dosage of two gummies to get the recommended daily values. Thus buyers end up receiving o...

Excerpt: ...r her motion was filed. The Court finds Defendants Fisher & Paykel Appliances, Inc. and Fisher & Paykel Appliances USA Holdings Inc. will not suffer any prejudice as a result. I. Background This case was originally filed as a PAGA-only matter based on a sole underlying Labor Code violation: Plaintiff alleged Defendants failed to pay her and other employees within the time limits set forth in Labor Code § 204. In the course of discovery, Defendan...

Excerpt: ...r the operative complaint (ROA 2), Plaintiff Thomas E. McKinnon was a firefighter employed by the California Military Department at Joint Forces Training Base Los Alamitos from 1977 to 2007. (¶ 15.) He was diagnosed with non- Hodgkins lymphoma, kidney cancer and liver cancer in December 2018, all of which he alleges were caused by occupational exposure to Defendants' products. (¶¶ 17, 20.) Among other things, Thomas brings a fraudulent conceal...

Excerpt: ...Complaint 5) Verified Application of John S. Phillips to Appear as Counsel Pro Hac Vice for Defendants E.I. Du Pont De Nemours and Co., Corteva, Inc., and DuPont De Nemours, Inc. 6) Verified Application of Katharine A Roin to Appear as Counsel Pro Hac Vice for Defendants E.I. Du Pont De Nemours and Co., Corteva, Inc. and DuPont De Nemours, Inc. 7)Verified Application of Katherine L. I Hacker to Appear as Counsel Pro Hac Vice for Defendants E.I. D...

Excerpt: ...sOlivos, Inc. Both demurrers are OVERRULED. I. Failure to State a Cause of Action The Court previously denied Phans55, PhansKGHoang, Ryan Phan and Susie Phan's motion for judgment on the pleadings, finding that the FAC stated facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action (except as to the seventh cause of action, which Plaintiff voluntarily dismissed). The Court later overruled @Phans-LosOlivos's demurrer on the same grounds (except as to the ...

Excerpt: ... penalties. The motion is DENIED insofar as Chartwell seeks to strike portions of the complaint. The operative pleading in this matter is the first amended complaint (FAC) (ROA 13), not the original complaint. From the Court's review of the FAC, it does not contain any language identical to what Chartwell seeks to strike from the original complaint. As a result, there is nothing to strike. The motion is GRANTED insofar as Chartwell seeks a determ...

Excerpt: ...s his individual claims against Probstein without prejudice to the claims of the putative class. The Court rejected this stipulation, noting that it needed to see the settlement agreement before it could dismiss the claims against Probstein. (ROA 45.) Plaintiff and Probstein then submitted a stipulation to file the settlement agreement under seal. The Court also rejected this stipulation. In so doing, the Court noted that it was willing to review...

Excerpt: ...o special interrogatories is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART. By April 26, 2021, Cross-Defendant Phil Inter Pharma USA, Inc. is ordered to provide further responses to Uni- Caps' Special Interrogatories, Set One, Nos. 11-13, 18, 25-34, 42-44, and 54-55 as set forth below. The motion is denied as to Interrogatories 47-49. Uni-Caps' request for sanctions is denied. I. Background This discovery arises from Uni-Caps' cross-claims. In the underlyin...

Excerpt: ... Both parties seek judicial notice of various documents. Because these documents are immaterial to the Court's ruling, the Court declines to take notice of them. (See Jordache Enterprises, Inc. v. Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison (1998) 18 Cal.4th 739, 748 fn. 6 [declining to take judicial notice of materials not “necessary, helpful, or relevant”].) I. Background A. Regulation of Slack-Fill “Slack-fill” refers to the difference between the act...

Excerpt: ...hearing, the parties should be proposed to discuss the timing of responsive pleadings and what effect, if any, this amendment may have on the April 12 trial date. For the reasons discussed below, the Court's current view is that allowing the TACC will have no immediate bearing on the trial as currently formulated. I. Factual Background As set forth in the currently operative 2AXC (ROA 7400), the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) is al...

Excerpt: ...SUSTAINED WITH LEAVE TO AMEND in its entirety. 2. The motion to strike is GRANTED WITH LEAVE TO AMEND in its entirety. Cardenas shall have until April 19, 2021 to file and serve an amended complaint. GROUNDS FOR DEMURRER RULING The Court assumes the parties' familiarity with the facts underlying this action. Generally speaking, the cross-complaint alleges Mona10 urgently needed financing for its hotel project in Buena Park and approached Cardenas...

Excerpt: ... In addition, Plaintiff must provide proof of service of any revised settlement agreement and supporting papers on the LWDA. As to the Settlement: 1. Are there actions any actions pending—whether individual, class or PAGA (including in the pre-filing LWDA stage)—that might be affected by this settlement? 2. A copy of Plaintiff's pre-filing letter to the LWDA is supposed to be an exhibit to the complaint, but it is not attached. Please provide...

Excerpt: ...dence intentionally destroyed by a party would be unfavorable to that party. (See Evid. Code § 413; CACI No. 204.) This ruling does not preclude Katten from seeking such an instruction if the evidence introduced at trial justifies it. I. Introduction This motion focuses on Plaintiffs CashCall, Inc., J. Paul Reddam, and Western Sky Funding, LLC's alleged non-compliance with their duty to preserve evidence once litigation is reasonably certain. Ge...

Excerpt: ...forth below. EVIDENTIARY MATTERS RadioShack's request for judicial notice of the unpublished opinion in Orange County Water District v. RadioShack Corporation (D075111, Feb. 19, 2019) 2019 WL 668665 (hereafter RadioShack)) is GRANTED. RadioShack has submitted what purport to be objections to the District's evidence. (ROA 8920.) Of these objections, only Objection No. 1 and Objection No. 8 are actually objections to evidence. The remaining objecti...

Excerpt: ...iled until March 8. The Court will exercise its discretion to consider Plaintiff's untimely supplemental brief. I. Factual Background After the parties agreed to mediate this case, defense counsel Lonnie Giamela reached out to Defendant for information about the number of aggrieved employees and pay periods at issue. As defined in the pleadings, the aggrieved employees consist of Defendant's non- exempt employees in California. (FAC, ¶ 7.) Mr. G...

Excerpt: ...putes OCWD's additional material facts. The Court has reviewed only the latter portion of the separate statement, which addresses the District's additional facts. A “reply separate statement” that responds to the non-moving party's disputes is not permitted. (See Nazir v. United Airlines, Inc. (2009) 178 Cal.App.4th 243, 249 [“Defendants' reply included, and properly, their response to plaintiff's additional disputed facts. Defendants' repl...

Excerpt: ...d worked at least one shift greater than 3.5 hours in length at any time from September 30, 2007 through the date of class certification. Waiting Time Class: All individuals who were employed as non-exempt employees by Defendant at any time from September 30, 2008 through the date of class certification and whose employment by Defendant has since ended. Falero is appointed the representative for these classes. Capstone Law, APC; Finkelstein, Blan...

Excerpt: ...le. 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 exist...

Excerpt: ...plemental briefing shall be filed on or before March 30, 2021. If a revised settlement agreement and/or proposed notice is submitted, a redline version showing all changes, deletions and additions must be submitted as well. In addition, Plaintiffs must provide proof of service of any revised settlement agreement and supplemental papers on the LWDA. The Court notes that while Plaintiff's settlement of his individual claims is apparently meant to b...

Excerpt: ...rssen v. Halma International Limited (Court of First Instance No. 2 of Barcelona, Ordinary Proceeding 645/2019 (the “Spanish Action”). For the reasons set forth below, Defendants' motion is GRANTED. I. Factual Background A. Visiometrics Acquisition This matter arises from the acquisition of the Visiometrics Group (“Visiometrics”) by subsidiaries of Halma plc (“Halma”). Visiometrics consisted of two subsidiaries, Visiometrics, S.L. (�...

Excerpt: ...motion is based solely on the argument that “Plaintiffs' second, third, fourth, seventh, eighth, and ninth causes of action are all duplicative of Plaintiffs' first cause of action for legal malpractice and therefore have no merit.” (Mot. at p. 2.) Accordingly, the following facts are drawn from the allegations of the 3AC, which it appears no party contests for purposes of this motion. Reddam is the founder of CashCall, a consumer lending com...

Excerpt: ...mpliance even though those witnesses did not submit reports about that topic. For the reasons set forth below, the motion is DENIED. By way of background, Case Management Order (CMO) No. 4, section IX, addressed the need for expert reports without distinguishing between retained experts and percipient witnesses who might offer expert opinions. That ambiguity was rectified on February 18, 2020 when the Court entered a stipulated order modifying CM...

Excerpt: ...g a cause of action asserted in a cross-complaint, or of any separate issue or of any number of causes of action or issues, preserving the right of trial by jury required by the Constitution or a statute of this state or of the United States.” (CCP § 1048(b).) Between the City's complaint, the defendant Developers' cross-complaint, and real party Cardenas's cross-complaint, there are over 25 causes of action at issue in this matter, with some ...

Excerpt: ...tion's (PBPA) motion to compel depositions as follows: 1. Plaintiffs and Cross-Defendants Floyd Chodosh, Sue Eicherly, Ole Haugen, Rodger Kane, Jr., Myrle Moore and Todd Peterson are ORDERED to sit for their depositions remotely by no later than February 19, 2021. PBPA is not required to re-notice their depositions to compel their attendance. 2. As to the document requests included in the January 7, 2021 notice of deposition, the Court rules as f...

Excerpt: ...3. FedEx is ordered to provide a further response no later than 15 days after the completion of a Belaire-West notice process. If the parties are unable to agree on the content of a Belaire-West notice by February 16, 2021, they are to contact the Court to schedule a conference to discuss the same. 3. The motion is granted in part and denied in part as to special interrogatory 4. By February 26, 2021, FedEx is to provide the full name and job tit...

Excerpt: ...TERS Wells Fargo' unopposed request for judicial notice of publicly recorded documents pertaining to Plaintiff Olga Krasyuk's property is GRANTED. (See Evans v. California Trailer Court, Inc. (1994) 28 Cal.App.4th 540, 549 [“[t]he court may take judicial notice of recorded deeds”].) Plaintiff's responsive separate statement (ROA 272) contains objections to pieces of evidence that support Wells Fargo's undisputed facts. Ordinarily, the Court w...

Excerpt: ... well. In addition, Plaintiff must provide proof of service of any revised settlement agreement and supporting papers on the LWDA. As to the Settlement: 1. Please provide a copy of Plaintiffs' pre-filing letters to the LWDA so the Court may evaluate compliance with administrative exhaustion requirements and understand the scope of the class release (which is based in part on the pre-filing letters). 2. What effect, if any, will this settlement ha...

Excerpt: ...he second cause of action and DENIED with respect to the first and third causes of action. 2. As to issue two, the motion is DENIED as to the first cause of action and, in light of the ruling on issue one, DENIED AS MOOT as to the second cause of action. 3. As to issue three, the motion is DENIED as to the first and third causes of action and, in light of the ruling on issue one, DENIED AS MOOT as to the second cause of action. As a result of thi...

Excerpt: ...ontract). 2. The demurrer is SUSTAINED WITH LEAVE TO AMEND as to the second and fourth causes of action (unjust enrichment and UCL). 3. The demurrer is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND as to the third cause of action (conversion). Plaintiffs shall have until February 19, 2021 to file a second amended complaint. The Court notes that neither the Declaration of Glenn M. Pfeiffer (with roughly 1,250 pages of exhibits) nor Plaintiffs' supplement of tr...

Excerpt: ...IED IN PART as follows: 1. Per her request in reply, Plaintiff's request for further responses to SIs 10-13 is WITHDRAWN. 2. Plaintiff's request for further responses to SIs 26 and 28 is GRANTED. By February 5, 2021, each Defendant is to serve a response stating the exact dates all policies at issue in these interrogatories were in effect. 3. The parties' cross-requests for monetary sanctions are DENIED. In support of their opposition, Defendants...

Excerpt: ... § 877.6 and finds that the offset credit pursuant to CCP § 877(a) is $1,686,612. As noted in the Court's December 11, 2020 minute order, there is no dispute that the $1.45 million paid in settlement is adequate for purposes of satisfying the criteria set forth in Tech-Bilt, Inc. v. Woodward-Clyde & Assoc. (1985) 38 Cal. 3d 488. As to the offset credit valuation, however, there are two primary issues in dispute. First, the District asserts that...

Excerpt: ...agreement and/or proposed notice is submitted, a redline version showing all changes, deletions and additions must be submitted as well. In addition, Plaintiffs must provide proof of service of any revised settlement agreement and supplemental papers on the LWDA. 1. Please provide copies of Plaintiffs' pre-filing LWDA letters so the Court may evaluate compliance with administrative exhaustion requirements. 2. Please provide proof of service of th...

Excerpt: ...opposed, is GRANTED for the reasons set forth below. The Court determines that the Orange County Superior Court is the appropriate site of coordination proceedings. The Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Division Three shall be the reviewing court. I. Factual Background The Included Actions arise from the alleged wage-and-hour policies of defendant Clubcorp USA, Inc. (“Clubcorp”), an owner and operator of private clubs. From the papers, it app...

Excerpt: ...de complete responses to every discovery request at issue. The requests were propounded in August 2019; Defendants have had more than enough time to compile all necessary information and documents. 2. The following facts shall be taken as established against Defendants: a. That each Business Manager and Shift Supervisor/Shift Lead was unable to leave the restaurant for at least the first six hours of his or her shift. b. That Defendants failed to...

Excerpt: ...As noted below, the Court believes that only the alleged risk of ovarian cysts allows for a non-preempted theory of recovery. 2. Insofar as the demurrer is based on insufficient allegations of causation with respect to claims sounding in failure to warn (i.e., all causes of action at issue here), the demurrer is sustained with leave to amend. 3. Insofar as the demurrer is based on insufficient allegations of an implied warranty, the demurrer is o...

Excerpt: ...urphy and Group 1 are unwilling to agree to the revisions, the Court will deny approval. In addition, as set forth below, the Court requires an explanation of why the list of dealerships affected by the agreement is a moving target. Any supplemental briefing in response to the below items shall be filed no later than January 11, 2021. If a revised settlement agreement and/or notice is submitted, a redline showing all changes, deletions and additi...

Excerpt: ...alter ego. (SAC (ROA 154), ¶¶ 10-13.) It appears to the Court that there are no separate substantive allegations of wrongdoing against Kirk. His liability, if any, would be derivative of AFL's. AFL filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on October 30, 2020. (ROA 137.) The case is currently stayed as to AFL. (ROA 138.) Kirk now asks that the case be stayed as to him pending the resolution of AFL's bankruptcy. He does not argue the automatic bankruptcy s...

Excerpt: ...relief. Plaintiffs shall have until January 11, 2021 to file a second amended complaint that addresses the concerns identified below. The Court has exercised its discretion to consider Gem Gravure's “supplemental brief” of November 12, 2020 (which was filed without permission) and Plaintiffs' opposition of December 3, 2020 (which was due on November 25). The Court finds no prejudice will result from consideration of these filings. I. Backgrou...

Excerpt: ... amount of the settlement—a total payment of $3,000,000—is not contested. However, Emerson Electric Co. and Morse TEC LLC (referred to herein as the Non-Settling Defendants) have filed an objection for the purpose of ensuring what they contend is a proper offset (i.e., settlement credits) pursuant to CCP § 877(a). As to the settlement itself, the Court finds that based on the evidence presented it satisfies the criteria set forth in Tech-Bil...

Excerpt: ...r which he was billed $630.80. (Ibid.) As alleged in the complaint—and undisputed for purposes of this motion— Plaintiff was a Medicare patient, and although his visit was overnight, he was treated on an outpatient basis. (Compl., ¶ 10.) Because Medicare does not cover SADs for outpatient visits, Plaintiff was left to cover the bill himself. (Ibid.) Plaintiff's son David Sacks, who took over responsibility for Plaintiff's financial dealings ...

Excerpt: ...fendants Burger Lounge III, LLC and Burger Lounge of America; (2) certifying a settlement class; and (3) granting preliminary approval to the parties' purported class action settlement. (Plaintiff Israel Lomeli was also a moving party, but he has since dismissed his claims. See ROA 100.) For the reasons set forth below, Belonia's motion is DENIED. I. Factual Background This is a putative class action based on routine wage-and-hour claims. The pre...

Excerpt: ...s dispute whether Dynamic fulfilled its pre-filing meet and confer obligations. Plaintiff argues Dynamic sent a single letter with an unreasonable response time (a letter sent on September 14 demanding further responses by September 18), then filed a motion without further attempt at informal resolution. Relying on Obregon v. Superior Court (1998) 67 Cal.App.4th 424, Plaintiff argues that sending a single letter and then filing a motion is insuff...

Excerpt: ... will refer to this as the “Policyholder Class.”) Subclass: All California policyholders insured under a dwelling policy issued by Defendants containing a Wildfire Sublimit, who made a claim for smoke, soot, ash, or char damage from wildfires 45 or more days after the wildfire, and Defendants paid the claim in an amount at or below $2,500, and had an estimate exceeding $2,500, at any time from November 9, 2014, until notice is mailed to the c...

Excerpt: ...ed settlement agreement must be served on the LWDA, and proof of service must be provided to the Court. The Court has two sets of comments requiring a response. I. Amendments to Agreement The Court previously indicated its preference for (1) a 60-day response period and (2) a provision that unclaimed funds go to the State Controller's Unclaimed Property Fund in the name of the class member. The amended notice (De Castro Decl., Ex. B) includes thi...

Excerpt: ...he event that motion is denied, the parties will need to meet and confer on the below issues before the Court considers the rescheduled discovery motions. 1. Standing The discovery sought by these motions is far-ranging and potentially burdensome depending on how the interrogatories and requests are interpreted. The Court provides some guidance on these issues (see below), but because of the potential time and expense of providing the discovery, ...

Excerpt: ...issue 1 in the notice of motion. 3. The motion is DENIED as to issues 3-6 in the notice of motion. As a result of this ruling, Plaintiff Joseph Delia's claims against TIC are dismissed with prejudice. The case remains live as to TICAC and non-moving Defendant Irvine Management Company (“IMC”). PROCEDURAL AND EVIDENTIARY MATTERS Defendants filed a “Reply to Plaintiff's Separate Statement.” (ROA 139.) It both replies to Plaintiff's purporte...

Excerpt: ... 148-149, 152, 156-158, and 163-166 of the cross-complaint and as to the 4 th, 5 th and 7th causes of action in the cross- complaint. It is denied in all other respects. In this ruling, the Court refers to the “Development Agreement,” the “Forbearance Agreement,” the “Extension Agreement,” and the “Rear Property.” These terms carry the same meanings as in the Court's prior rulings in this matter. EVIDENTIARY MATTERS The City seeks...

Excerpt: ...d as well. In addition, Plaintiff must provide proof of service of any revised settlement agreement and supporting papers on the LWDA. As to the Settlement: 1. Are there any other actions pending against Defendant (whether individual, class, or PAGA, including PAGA actions in the pre-filing LWDA stage) that could be affected by this settlement? 2. Please provide a copy of any pre-filing letters to the LWDA. There are no copies in the record, thou...

Excerpt: ...t does not allow recovery for the following claimed expenses: a. A $35 charge for “file setup” without further explanation on October 2, 2017. b. A $125 charge for “service fee” without further explanation on March 6, 2018. c. $98.25 in charges for printing and scanning, which are properly considered firm overhead. d. $30 in charges for using Docusign, which is unnecessary when the parties' settlement agreement provides that facsimile sig...

Excerpt: ...nt pursuant to CCP § 877.6 is GRANTED. When a motion for determination of good faith settlement is unopposed, a “barebones motion which sets forth the ground of good faith, accompanied by a declaration which sets forth a brief background of the case is sufficient.” (City of Grand Terrace v. Superior Court (1987) 192 Cal.App.3d 1251, 1261.) Defendant's moving papers and the supporting declarations of Brian D. Langa and Jeffrey V. Dagdigian ea...

Excerpt: ...ca, Inc., and Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.'s Motion to Stay, or in the Alternative to Dismiss the Duplicative Action 4) Status Conference Before the Court are three motions: 1. Defendants Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., Toyota Motor North America, Inc., and Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc. (collectively, the “Corporate Defendants”) demur to the complaint. (ROA 22.) 2. Defendants Tu...

Excerpt: ... shall be filed on or before December 7, 2020. If a revised settlement agreement and/or class notice is submitted, a redline showing all changes, deletions and additions must be submitted as well. In addition, Plaintiff must provide proof of service of any revised settlement agreement and supporting papers on the LWDA. As to the Settlement: 1. Please provide copies of any pre-filing letters served on the LWDA. 2. Please provide proof of service o...

Excerpt: ... the motion—is the difference between the definitions of “Class” and “Class Period.” The “Class” consists of employees who worked for Defendant through December 31, 2018, while the “Class Period” (i.e., the release period) extends through December 31, 2019. That is, employees hired on January 1, 2019 or later are not covered by this settlement, even though the conduct at issue apparently extends through at least December 31, 201...

Excerpt: ...y must, at minimum, address the below issues. The Court understands this motion is unopposed. The Court must nonetheless conduct a careful review to find that the proposed class satisfies all requirements for class certification, independent of the defendants' acquiescence. (See Dunk v. Ford Motor Co. (1996) 48 Cal.App.4th 1794, 1803 fn. 9 [“class action settlements should be scrutinized more carefully if there has been no adversary certificati...

Excerpt: ... 1033.5(a), (b), (c)(4).) Allowable and discretionary costs may be recovered only if “reasonably necessary to the conduct of the litigation rather than merely convenient or beneficial to its preparation.” (Id., § 1033.5(c); see also Ladas v. California State Auto Assn. (1993) 19 Cal.App.4th 761, 774.) Other costs may also be recoverable depending on the statutory scheme at issue. “If the items appearing in a cost bill appear to be proper c...

Excerpt: ... etc. against ADK and Katelyne are barred by this determination of good faith. EVIDENTIARY MATTERS WRW Properties, LLC's unopposed request for judicial notice (ROA 1181) is GRANTED. The Court rules as follows on WRW's evidentiary objections (ROA 1180): 1. Objections 1-2: overruled. 2. Objection 3: sustained as to “so neither the claims of JIMMY PHAN or WRW will be impacted by a good faith settlement order concerning the settlement of ADK and BT...

Excerpt: ...no longer than 12 pages. By December 4, Defendant may file and serve a response to the trial plan. The response shall be no longer than 8 pages. The continued hearing on this motion will take place on December 11, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. in Department CX104, after which the Court will issue a final ruling. Notwithstanding this continuance, the parties may appear (via CourtCall) at today's hearing if they wish to be heard regarding the below rulings on...

Excerpt: ... its individual officers. (ROA 120.) The agreement required Bayside to make installment payments, but it imposed no payment obligations on the individual officers. Bayside made its first payment, but no additional payments. Ortiz moved for enforcement of the settlement agreement against all defendants under CCP § 664.6. On July 24, 2020, the Court granted the motion as to Bayside but denied it as to the individual officers, for the agreement did...

Excerpt: ...reviously sustained without leave to amend.) Schnider's demurrer is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND as to all parties and claims. Request for Judicial Notice Plaintiffs seek judicial notice of three documents filed in the related bankruptcy proceeding. (ROA 341.) This unopposed request is GRANTED. Insofar as the declaration in support of the request for judicial notice discusses material other than the identification of these three documents, th...

Excerpt: ...collectively “AMC Parties”) to confirm the April 30, 2020 arbitration award. The petition is at ROA 76, the response is at ROA 91, and the reply is at ROA 96. Kornievsky v. Smith Linden & Basso, LLP, No. 13-00635667 1. Petition of Allen L. Basso; Allen A. Basso; and Smith Linden & Basso, LLP (hereafter collectively “Basso Parties”) to confirm the April 30, 2020 arbitration award. The petition is at ROA 1766, the response is at ROA 1815 (o...

Excerpt: ...at 2205 South Standard Avenue for the purpose of determining whether deeper groundwater on the property is contaminated. (¶5 of Herndon Declaration). The inspection permitted shall be consistent with the CPT testing articulated in the Work Plan attached as Exhibit “1” to the Brown Declaration. More specifically, OCWD shall be permitted to obtain samples from SAM-CPT-89 and SAM-CPT-90 at the locations depicted in Figures 1 and 2 of Exhibit 1 ...

Excerpt: ...Pray and Mr. Aiwazian) are ordered to appear (by CourtCall) for today's scheduled hearing. I. Issues for Which the Court Requests Briefing from the LWDA After reviewing the parties' papers, the Court believes its analysis would be aided by a brief from the LWDA addressing the questions posed below, as well as any additional issues the LWDA believes merit the Court's attention. (See Starks v. Vortex Industries, Inc. (Ct.App. Aug. 25, 2020, Nos. B2...