Excerpt: ...tor Company's motion to tax costs. Evidentiary Objections Plaintiffs have filed evidentiary objections to the declaration of Matthew K. McCullough filed in support of Ford's opposition. The Court rules on these objections as follows: Objection No. 1: SUSTAINED on the grounds that Exhibit A to the McCullough Declaration is an improper attempt to circumvent page limits and OVERRULED on all other grounds. Ford cannot avoid the page limit for opposit...

Excerpt: ...le the Court continues to have serious concerns with Plaintiffs' counsel's investigation and valuation of the PAGA claims at issue in this matter—in particular, Plaintiffs' counsel's admission that he reviewed no pay records other than those of the three named Plaintiffs and the decision to use a $50 per violation penalty instead of a $100 per violation penalty—the Court is convinced, based upon information provided by Defendants' counsel abo...

Excerpt: ... effect of this ruling on the definition of the certified class. I. UNDISPUTED FACTUAL BACKGROUND Plaintiffs are former employees of Defendant. Serna's tenure with Defendant ended in April 2016 and Flores's ended in July 2017. (SAC ¶¶ 26-27.) For purposes of this motion, the parties do not dispute that on February 2, 2018 Defendant's wage statements were changed to identify “Mitchell International, Inc.” as the employer. (See Responsive Sep...

Excerpt: ...howing all changes, deletions, and additions shall be submitted as well. Late papers will not be accepted. The Court continues to have serious concerns about how carefully the settlement materials were drafted and whether the settlement is reasonable, with particular concern about the financial condition of Defendant and the ramifications for the settlement structure of the installment. The Court will not approve the proposed settlement until the...

Excerpt: ... v. San Miguel Equities, LLC), this ruling also shall be applicable to that proceeding. After discussing the context of the present motion, the Court will issue direction regarding the prior orders. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND First Foundation Bank holds a $5.6 million judgment against Defendant San Miguel Equities, LLC, issued in the companion matter First Foundation Bank v. San Miguel Equities, LLC, No. 18-967476. The present dispute conc...

Excerpt: ...aintiff's First and Second causes of action in the Second Amended Complaint for waiting time penalties and injunctive relief and restitution under Business & Professions Code section 17200 on an individual basis, and STAYS this action pending the outcome of arbitration. Plaintiff's class claims are DISMISSED. Defendant's Demurrer to the Third Cause of Action under PAGA is SUSTAINED without leave to amend for the reasons set forth in the Court's 1...

Excerpt: ...eory that paystubs provided by Defendant to putative class members during the class period failed to include Defendant's legal name “Mitchell International, Inc.” In all other respects, the motion is DENIED. The class is defined as follows: All current and former hourly-paid or 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 dete...

Excerpt: ...and otherwise is OVERRULED. The Motion to Strike punitive damages is DENIED. Defendant Patrol Masters, Inc., is to answer the Complaint on or before February 15, 2019. The Court exercises its discretion to consider Plaintiff's opposition which was not served in a manner to ensure delivery by the next business day. (CCP § 1005.) Counsel is ordered to comply with the service requirements of the Code of Civil Procedure in connection with all future...

Excerpt: ...for Judicial Notice of pleadings filed in the underlying action, Aubrey, et al. v. KB Home Greater Los Angeles, Inc., et al. (Aubrey), Riverside Superior Court Case No. RIC 476889, is GRANTED. St. Paul's unopposed Request for Judicial Notice of a motion for summary judgment and complaint filed in Liberty Mutual Insurance Company v. Blatt (N.D. Cal., Oct. 26, 2007, No. 06-2002 SC) 2007 WL 3171263, a federal district court decision relied upon by K...

Excerpt: ...agraph in section 4, on page 5, of the arbitration agreement regarding confidentiality. Plaintiff's class allegations are DISMISSED. Plaintiff's Sixth Cause of Action under PAGA is STAYED pending the outcome of arbitration. An Arbitration Review Hearing is scheduled for March 5, 2019 at 8:30 a.m. Grounds for Ruling: Plaintiff, a former employee of defendant Automobile Club of Southern California, filed this putative wage and hour class action on ...

Excerpt: ... issues it has agreed to arbitrate. [Citations.]” (Larkin v. Williams, Woolley, Cogswell, Nakazawa & Russell (1999) 76 Cal.App.4th 227, 230; see also Hayes Children Leasing Co. v. NCR Corp. (1995) 37 Cal.App.4th 775, 787 [“[plaintiff], of course, can be compelled to arbitrate only such issues as it in fact agreed to arbitrate”].) The arbitration clause in this case is unambiguously narrow in scope, limited to controversies “involving the ...

Excerpt: ... non-party Todd Kurtin to set aside the judgment entered in this action on March 23, 2018, and for a new trial, are GRANTED pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure §§ 657(1), 663 and 473(d). Upon granting the motion, the Court will sua sponte consolidate for all purposes Kurtin v. Gulfstream Finance, Inc., Case No. 30-2012- 00593758 (already related to this action and assigned to this court as of 02/14/2018) with this action. The Gray 1 action will...

Excerpt: ...efore August 24, 2018. If a revised Settlement Agreement and/or proposed Class Notice is submitted, a redline version showing all changes, deletions and additions shall be submitted as well. As to the Settlement: 1. The proposed settlement includes a settlement of Plaintiff's PAGA claim, but there is no proof of service of the settlement agreement and motion on the LWDA. (See Labor Code § 2699(l)(2).) In addition, since it was not attached to th...

Excerpt: ...ely to affected employee(s) under Labor Code section 1197.1. The motion is DENIED as to the portion of plaintiff's claim for civil penalties under PAGA and Labor Code section 1197.1 that would, if recovered, be allocated between the LWDA and the aggrieved employees. (Iskanian v. CLS Transportation Los Angeles, LLC (2014) 59 Cal.4th 348.) The Court is inclined to deny without prejudice Defendant's request for a stay of this action pending arbitrat...

Excerpt: ...he hearing to discuss a continued hearing date and briefing schedule. 1. Mr. Escobar's declaration filed in opposition to the motion states that he speaks and reads Spanish and that he did not understand the terms of the employee handbook because it was in English. Mr. Escobar did not state that he speaks and reads only Spanish, and he did not address the level of his reading proficiency, if any, in English. In reply, Defendants submitted a suppl...

Excerpt: ...nce; the Court is not reaching the merits of plaintiff's proposed additional causes of action at this time. First, plaintiff has failed to comply in several material respects with Rule 3.1324 of the California Rules of Court (CRC) applicable to motions to amend pleadings. Plaintiff did not attach a redlined copy of the proposed amended pleading reflecting what is proposed to be deleted and added to the pleading, or specify the changes by page, pa...

Excerpt: ...f the notice of entry of judgment or dismissal by the clerk under Code of Civil Procedure section 664.5 or the date of service of written notice of entry of judgment or dismissal, or within 180 days after entry of judgment, whichever is first.” CCP § 1032(a)(4) provides, in pertinent part: "Prevailing party" includes the party with a net monetary recovery, a defendant in whose favor a dismissal is entered, a defendant where neither plaintiff n...

Excerpt: ...Defendant did not object and provided a chart with 23 names, addresses, and telephone numbers. In moving to compel a further response, Plaintiff argues that this list is not accurate or complete. There does not appear to be any evidence that the list of 23 individuals is not accurate; with that said, the Court is not able to decipher a handwritten exhibit that Plaintiff attached as part of Exhibit 5 to the Carbone declaration. In opposition to th...

Excerpt: ...file a Fourth Amended Complaint is GRANTED. Plaintiff is ordered to file and serve the proposed Fourth Amended Complaint attached to the Massey Declaration no later than August 3, 2018. Defendants' objections to the Massey declaration are all OVERRULED. Defendants' request for judicial notice is GRANTED. The Court may, in its discretion, after notice to the adverse party, allow, upon any terms as may be just, an amendment to any pleading or proce...

Excerpt: ...e community of interest requirement embodies three factors: (1) predominant common questions of law or fact; (2) class representatives with claims or defenses typical of the class; and (3) class representatives who can adequately represent the class.” (Brinker Restaurant Corporation v. Superior Court (2012) 53 Cal.4th 1004, 1021 [internal quotes and citations omitted; bracketing added].) These elements are typically referred to as: (1) ascertai...

Excerpt: ...w. A “successful party” may recover fees under section 1021.5 upon showing “(1) the enforcement of an important right affecting the public interest, (2) the conferring of a significant benefit on the general public or a large class of individuals and (3) the necessity and financial burden of private enforcement renders the award appropriate.” (Jaramillo v. Cnty. of Orange (2011) 200 Cal.App.4th 811, 829.) The Court finds that the foregoin...

Excerpt: ... is no possibility that Plaintiff will be able to meet the requirements for class certification. Specifically, Plaintiff “must demonstrate the existence of an ascertainable and sufficiently numerous class, a well-defined community of interest, and substantial benefits from certification that render proceeding as a class superior to the alternatives.” (Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court (2012) 53 Cal.4th 1004, 1021; see also CCP § 382...

Excerpt: ...issue, nor did Plaintiffs provide such information elsewhere during the many years of discovery in this case. The motion is GRANTED as to the request to preclude reference to a benefit of the bargain damages theory. Throughout this litigation, Plaintiffs (in their discovery responses and in court) have insisted that their damages will be based solely on expert testimony. Accordingly, Plaintiffs will be precluded from putting on evidence of any al...

Excerpt: ...es that Plaintiffs' 4 th cause of action for retaliation, 9 thcause of action for wrongful termination and 10 th cause of action for discrimination are barred by the doctrine of collateral estoppel. Plaintiffs filed a lawsuit in federal court on 8/28/14 alleging wage and hour violations, discrimination and retaliatory firing claims. The court granted summary judgment on the ground that Plaintiffs failed to raise a genuine issue of material fact t...

Excerpt: ... alleges that he worked for Defendant between February 2014 and April 2016 and asserts class-wide claims for (1) violation of Labor Code §§ 510 and 1198 (unpaid overtime); (2) violation of Labor Code §§ 226.7 and 512(a) (unpaid meal period premiums); (3) violation of Labor Code § 226.7 (unpaid rest period premiums); (4) violation of Labor Code §§ 1194, 1197, 1197.1 ( unpaid minimum wages); ( 5) violation of Labor Code §§ 201 and 202 ( fi...

Excerpt: ...ion, custody and control pursuant to CCP § 2031.010, which included Plaintiff's timesheets and payroll registers from June 2, 2013 to November 12, 2016. Defendant's supplemental responses support this: Defendant referred Plaintiff to Plaintiff's wage statements and payroll registers previously produced, and then states that it “will produce all responsive documents in its possession, custody, or control not previously produced.” In Defendant...

Excerpt: ...interest, and substantial benefits from certification that render proceeding as a class superior to the alternatives. In turn, the community of interest requirement embodies three factors: (1) predominant common questions of law or fact; (2) class representatives with claims or defenses typical of the class; and (3) class representatives who can adequately represent the class. (Brinker Restaurant Corporation v. Superior Court (2012) 53 Cal.4th 10...

Excerpt: ... on Health & Safety Code § 1278.5; Lab. Code §§ 98.6 and 1102.5; and Gov. Code, § 8547. As stated in their motion, Defendant “seeks summary adjudication of issues pertaining to one discrete adverse action buried deep within the Second Amended Complaint (“SAC”): a 10% reduction in Plaintiff Peter H. Breen, M.D.'s salary effective with his paycheck of July 31, 2008.” (ROA 678, 9:4-7, emphasis in original.) Specifically, Defendant assert...

Excerpt: ...g before it, in every matter pertaining thereto. [D]isqualification motions involve a conflict between the clients' right to counsel of their choice and the need to maintain ethical standards of professional responsibility. The paramount concern must be to preserve public trust in the scrupulous administration of justice and the integrity of the bar. The important right to counsel of one's choice must yield to ethical considerations that affect t...

Excerpt: ...this state, the court shall stay or dismiss the action in whole or in part on any conditions that may be just.” “Forum non conveniens is an equitable doctrine invoking the discretionary power of a court to decline to exercise the jurisdiction it has over a transitory cause of action when it believes that the action may be more appropriately and justly tried elsewhere.” (Stangvik v. Shiley Inc. (1991) 54 Cal.3d 744, 751.) Defendant bears the...

Excerpt: ...Amended Consolidated Complaint for civil penalties is GRANTED. Defendant's request for judicial notice is GRANTED. Defendant's motion to strike Plaintiffs' Opposition is DENIED. Plaintiff Borrego executed an arbitration agreement on 9/8/12 which provides in pertinent part (ROA 622, Perches Decl., Ex. A): 3. Arbitration. I agree that any dispute or controversy arising out of, relating to, or concerning my employment shall be settled by arbitration...

Excerpt: ...to compel responses. In particular, Plaintiffs filed a Motion to Compel Further Discovery Responses regarding written discovery on April 5, 2017, and sought a hearing before Judge Stock, the discovery referee. However, the Motion to Compel was never heard due to the stay. Plaintiffs have also filed a motion to compel depositions of 137 defendants. Trial has been set for 5/13/19; Plaintiffs express concern that they will not have sufficient time t...

Excerpt: ...ing all changes, deletions and additions shall be submitted as well. As to the Settlement: 1. If a revised settlement is submitted, please ensure that it is signed by all parties, as the “Stipulation of Settlement” submitted with the original papers was not signed by Mr. Flores or Mr. De La Paz. (Oddly, Jose Guevara signed the agreement, even though the agreement states that his claims are being resolved in a separate agreement.) 2. Based on ...

Excerpt: ...from June 13, 2010 through trial. The parties do not dispute that lifting the stay is proper; instead, they dispute the scope of Plaintiff's remaining claim after the Tsengsettlement. In Tseng v. Nordstrom, Inc., United States District Court, Central District of California, Case No. 11-cv-08471, the court approved a settlement on 1/8/18, releasing the seating claims under PAGA for “all non- exempt individuals who worked as a salesperson in a No...

Excerpt: ...he OCTA is entitled to the requested relief if the Court finds that (a) OCTA is entitled to take the Subject Property Interest by eminent domain; and (b) OCTA has deposited an amount sufficient to cover the probable amount of compensation that will be awarded. (CCP § 1255.410; see also CCP § 1255.010(a).) In this case, the Property is being taken for the Interstate-405 Improvement Project between State Route 73 and Interstate 605. There is no d...

Excerpt: ...nd awards this amount. Set forth below is an explanation of how the Court determined this amount. Costs are awarded in the amount of $11,919.34. Plaintiff is awarded an enhancement of $4000. In making this award, the Court has considered the time and effort Plaintiff expended in prosecution of this action, the benefit conferred on the Class, and all other relevant factors. Pursuant to CCP § 384(b), Plaintiff shall submit to the Court a final rep...

Excerpt: ...h respect to the first cause of action, Defendant argues that it (1) has governmental immunity pursuant to Gov't Code § 818.6, and (2) that the “constructive notice” allegation is uncertain. Gov. Code § 818.6 states: “A public entity is not liable for injury caused by its failure to make an inspection, or by reason of making an inadequate or negligent inspection, of any property, other than its property (as defined in subdivision (c) of S...

Excerpt: ...OA 1756) is GRANTED. This motion is related to the pending motion in Kurtin v. Gulfstream to compel production. Only Defendant Bruce Elieff opposes this motion, but not on substantive grounds such as relevancy or privacy/confidentiality concerns. Further, Elieff fails to demonstrate any purported prejudice if this motion is granted. Instead, Elieff argues that by recently retaining Gray1's counsel, Robert Odson, Kurtin is trying to circumvent the...

Excerpt: ...ions of David B. Cosgrove and Scott A. Lidgard is DENIED, pursuant to Cal. Rules of Ct., Rule 3.1113(l) (requests for judicial notice must be made in a separate document). However, because judicial notice is generally not required for documents that are part of the Court's own files, and inasmuch as Defendants include these documents as an exhibit to their opposition, the Court has separately considered these documents as evidence supporting the ...

Excerpt: ...vised Settlement Agreement and/or proposed Class Notice is submitted, a redline version showing all changes, deletions, and additions shall be submitted as well. As to the Settlement: 1. At final approval please submit billing records for fees and costs. The Court will not be inclined to award an amount of fees and costs greater than the amounts stated in the class notice. 2. At final approval Plaintiff is to provide a declaration addressing the ...

Excerpt: ...ctrodes coming off of the silicon carbide resistor during operation” and “(4) resistance increasing randomly during operation.” According to Defendant, because these allegations involve what supposedly occurred once the spark plugs were put into operation (i.e., used in an actual airplane engine), and because this Court has already ruled that post- manufacturing operational problems are not covered by 14 C.F.R. § 21.316(c) (the sole regula...

Excerpt: ...Requests”) Nos. 6 - 11 and produce all documents relating to discovery responses prepared by any party or third-party in the related Gray1Action (Case No. 2010-00361680) is GRANTED. Defendant is ordered to produce the documents identified below no later than June 29, 2018, unless the parties agree to a different deadline. Plaintiff's request for judicial is GRANTED. (ROA 456) The current documents at issue, pursuant to Plaintiff's Reply (ROA 47...

Excerpt: ...and Motion to Seal Confidential and Trade Secret Information Filed by Daniel Piggue in Support of Opposition to Second Amended Motion for Preliminary Approval of Class Action Settlement Motion to Compel Deposition Plaintiff Piggue's motion to compel the deposition of Defendant Inter-Con's person most knowledgeable (PMQ) is GRANTED. Plaintiff's request for sanctions is DENIED. This is a motion that did not need to be bought and probably would not ...

Excerpt: ...unging a lis pendens. A court “shall” grant a motion to expunge if either of the following conditions exists: (1) The pleading upon which the lis pendens is based does not contain a real property claim (CCP §405.31); or (2) The claimant has not established by a preponderance of the evidence the probable validity of the real property claim (CCP §405.32). At the heart of Plaintiff's Complaint in this action is a claim for Quiet Title. Because...

Excerpt: ... Westminster, CA (the "Property"), and that on February 28, 2017, a Grant Deed was recorded bearing recordation number 2017000083866, purporting to transfer fee title in the Subject Property from Brookhurst to Defendant JVS Development LLC ("JVS"). (FAC ¶¶ 1, 32(a), Exh. 10.) In the demurrer, Brookhurst argues that Plaintiff's judicial admissions that Plaintiff was the sole owner of the Property and that it did not transfer its fee interest to ...

Excerpt: ...on 6/30/10 against Defendants Mr. Heater, Inc., Enerco Group, Inc. (collectively “Enerco”), and Lowe's HIW, Inc. alleging unfair competition, false advertising and violation of the Consumer Legal Remedies Act (CLRA). Plaintiff claimed that representations by defendants that the heaters that are the subject of this litigation were safe and approved for indoor use were false and misleading under Section 19881 of the Health and Safety Code, whic...

Excerpt: ...es that 30% of the settlement amount is appropriate in this case. Among other things, the hourly rates of all the attorneys working on the case is high (out of 13 timekeepers, the lowest rate is $400 per hour notwithstanding the attorney's experience or qualifications), and there appears to be some duplication of work among the many attorneys. As to this latter point, Plaintiff's counsel failure to comply with the Court's May 4, 2018 request that...

Excerpt: ...CP § 1021.5, a party may recover attorney fees when an action has resulted in the enforcement of an important public right, a significant benefit has been conferred on the general public or a large class of persons, private enforcement was necessary and the financial burden of private enforcement warrants subsidy of the successful party's counsel. Keep Our Mountains Quiet v. County of Santa Clara (2015) 236 Cal.App.4th 714, 736. It is well recog...

Excerpt: ...n Pay; (2) Age Discrimination: (3) Breach of Contract- Employment Agreement; (4) Breach of Contract-Stock Purchase Agreement; (5) Fraud; (6) Trespass: (7) Conversion; (8) Invasion of Privacy; and (9) Elder Abuse. Hutton Development Co., Inc. and Christopher J. Felix were named as the cross-defendants. Following a DSLE hearing on the vacation pay issue (at which he was awarded $1,000 in waiting time penalties), Bellavia abandoned the vacation pay ...

Excerpt: ...nt Requests”) Nos. 6 – 11, and produce all documents relating to discovery responses prepared by any party or third-party in the related Gray1 Action (Case No. 2010-00361680) is CONTINUED to June 15, 2018 at 9:00 a.m. Since filing the motion, the issues have been somewhat narrowed to the production of the following documents which were produced in the Gray1 Action but have not yet been produced here:  Blackstar production, Bates BLK 1-4294...

Excerpt: ...Decl., ¶ 6.) The only issue is whether Defendant has waived its right to compel arbitration. The Court concludes that based on the factors stated in Saint Agnes Medical Center v. PacifiCare of California (2003) 31 Cal.4 th1187 and other applicable case law, Defendant has acted inconsistently with its right to compel arbitration resulting in prejudice to Plaintiff. (See Hoover v. American Income Life Ins. Co., (2012) 206 Cal. App. 4th 1193, 1203 ...

Excerpt: ... factual disputes likely to be presented, and decide whether individual or common issues predominate.” Brinker Restaurant Corporation v. Superior Court (2012) 53 Cal.4th 1004, 1025. “The certification question is essentially a procedural one that does not ask whether an action is legally or factually meritorious. A trial court ruling on a certification motion determines whether ... the issues which may be jointly tried, when compared with tho...

Excerpt: ...LEMENT The motion for preliminary approval of class action settlement brought jointly by Plaintiffs Daisy Martinez and Douglas Lindgren and Defendant Inter-Con Security Systems is DENIED. Background The present motion for preliminary approval is the second effort by these parties to obtain approval of a settlement. The first effort occurred in October 2017 when a motion for approval of a PAGA settlement (in what was then known as the Ball case) w...

Excerpt: ... counsel regarding Lumanlan's obligation to file a responsive pleading in February and March, and mailed Defense counsel a Notice and Acknowledgment of Receipt. (ROA 152, ¶¶ 9-13, Ex. A.) However, there is no evidence that Defense counsel agreed to accept service on Lumanlan's behalf. Indeed, in opposition, Defense counsel confirms that Mohajerian APC had not been engaged to represent Lumanlan and it was not authorized to accept service on beha...

Excerpt: ...iffs' Complaint for Professional Negligence is GRANTED. Except for Defendant's objections based on the parol evidence rule, Defendant's objections are all OVERRULED by virtue of its failure to adhere to Rule of Court 3.1354(b) which requires the objecting party to quote or set forth the objectionable material. The Parol Evidence Rule is rule of a substantive law, not of evidence, and not dependent on objections. (Casa Herrera, Inc. v. Beydoun (20...

Excerpt: ...e conditioned on the proposed protective order (see Motion No. 2). The responses at issue before the Court are Defendant's further supplemental responses to Plaintiff's second set of document demands which consist of 65 demands. It appears that there is only one Request – No. 25 – to which Defendant asserted only objections without ever providing a substantive response. This Request states: “Any and all DOCUMENTS RELATING TO YOUR ranking of...

Excerpt: ...emporary relief from the stay in place for the Court to grant leave to file a third amended complaint which dismisses, without prejudice, the California Labor Code claims against Defendants Amazon.com, LLC, Amazon Logistics, Inc. and Amazon Fulfillment Services, Inc. (“Amazon Defendants”). Plaintiffs included the proposed Third Amended Complaint, as Ex. 1 to the Ehmann Declaration. (ROA 298, Ex. 1) Plaintiffs contend that this amended pleadin...

Excerpt: ...ssues, the most significant of which related to findings relating to alter ego and joint employer status. The motion is DENIED. A “successful party” may recover fees under section 1021.5 upon showing “(1) the enforcement of an important right affecting the public interest, (2) the conferring of a significant benefit on the general public or a large class of individuals, and (3) the necessity and financial burden of private enforcement rende...

Excerpt: ...y necessary to the conduct of the litigation,” pursuant to CCP § 1033.5(c): (1) service of process costs for witness Jonathan Lundberg ($1,591); and (2) the last entry for service of process of deposition subpoenas of Gabrielle Fields and Donald Fields ($1,169). In addition, the following costs are taxed as not allowable costs pursuant to CCP §§ 1033.5(b)(1), (3), and (5): court-ordered transcripts ($3,931); and the costs claimed in the “o...

Excerpt: ... Exh. A to the 04/03/18 Notice of Errata. (ROA 831.) The Court appoints Capstone Law APC as lead counsel to communicate with Defendant and the Court on behalf of all Plaintiffs. The firms of Finkelstein, Blankinship Frei-Pearson & Garber, LLP and Keller Grover LLP, which are also identified in the Consolidated Complaint as “Proposed Co-Lead Collective and Class Counsel” may assist the Capstone firm, as necessary. The primary point of contact,...

Excerpt: ..., § 8547.10(c), which was enacted after § 818, specifically states "any person who intentionally engages in acts of reprisal, retaliation, threats, coercion, or similar acts against a university employee, including an officer or faculty member, or applicant for employment for having made a protected disclosure shall be liable in an action for damages brought against him or her by the injured party. Punitive damages may be awarded by the court w...

Excerpt: ...issue identified below. Any supplemental briefing shall be filed no later than June 1, 2018. When responding to the issues, please identify the items of concern by number. If a revised Settlement Agreement is submitted, a redline version showing all changes, deletions, and additions shall be submitted as well. Item 3. The Release Language in § 1.31. Despite the instruction in the 3/23/18 Minute Order, the parties left the phrase “or could have...

Excerpt: ...ns Code § 17200 et seq. (Unfair Competition Law) Business & Professions Code section 17200 (“UCL”) prohibits “any unlawful, unfair or fraudulent business act or practice and unfair, deceptive, untrue or misleading advertising.” Under the unlawful prong, a violation of law may be actionable as unfair competition under § 17200. (Lueras v. BAC Home Loans Servicing, Inc. (2013) 221 Cal.App.4 th 49, 81.) “An unfair business practice occurs...

Excerpt: ...n are SUSTAINED. All other evidentiary objections are OVERRULED. This petition centers on an arbitration provision found in the Terms of Use that Ticketmasters' website users supposedly agree to when they purchase tickets on that site. In this case, the tickets purchased by Plaintiffs were to the ill-fated Route 91 Harvest Festival concert in Las Vegas in October, 2017. The Terms of Use here are of the “browsewrap” variety. A browsewrap agree...

Excerpt: ...tive bargaining agreements (CBAs), the 2016-2020 Master Labor Agreement and the 2016-2019 Memorandum Agreement. Defendants contend that Article IX of the Master Agreement provides for the arbitration of alleged wage and hour violations under Wage Order 16, and that because the Memorandum Agreement incorporates the Master Agreement by reference, the claims in this case are subject to arbitration under the grievance and arbitration provisions of th...

Excerpt: ..., the Court granted Defendants' motion to compel arbitration of the 1 st- 5 th causes of action, and stayed the trial court proceedings on the PAGA claim. In connection with their briefing on the motion to compel arbitration, the parties agreed that the arbitrator would decide whether the asserted class claims are arbitrable. On March 5, 2018, the Arbitrator concluded that “there is a contractual basis upon which to conclude the Parties intende...

Excerpt: ... declaration stating the previous order, by which judge it was made, and the new or different facts, circumstances or law claimed to exist. (CCP § 1008(a).) “[T]he party seeking reconsideration [must] provide both newly discovered evidence and an explanation for the failure to have produced such evidence earlier.” (Berman v. Health Net (2000) 80 Cal.App.4th 1359, 1369.) The requirements of CCP § 1008(a) have not been satisfied here. The mot...

Excerpt: ....” Specifically, he seeks relief pursuant to CCP § 2023.010(d)-(g) which allows sanctions for “misuses of the discovery process,” including “(f) making an evasive response to discovery” and “(g) disobeying a court order to provide discovery.” While Plaintiff argues that Defendant has engaged in a pattern of discovery abuses, for the purposes of this motion the Court focuses on Plaintiff's ongoing efforts to obtain class contact inf...

Excerpt: ...approval of class action settlement is GRANTED, as modified below. The Court finds the settlement fair, adequate and reasonable. Administrative costs are approved in the amount of $9,500. The Notice provided that Administrator fees would not exceed $9,500, so any excess fees must come from sources other than the $175,000 maximum settlement amount. The Court finds $49,000 (28% of the maximum settlement amount) to be a reasonable amount for attorne...

Excerpt: ...ing all changes, deletions and additions shall be submitted as well. The motion for preliminary approval and the settlement agreement refer to the filing of a motion for leave to file a second amended complaint. No such motion currently is on file. If the parties wish to file a stipulation regarding the filing of a second amended complaint in the form which is attached as Exhibit B to the Declaration of Eric Yaeckel, the Court will approve it. As...

Excerpt: ...d C, judicial notice is granted only as to their existence and will not extend to the truth of any statements therein. (Sosinsky v. Grant (1992) 6 Cal.App.4th 1548, 1564-1566; Bach v. NcNelis (1989) 207 Cal.App.3d 852, 865.) Plaintiffs Rimrock High Income PLUS (Master) Fund Ltd. and Rimrock Low Volatility (Master) Fund Ltd. (“Rimrock”) allege the following two causes of action against Defendants Jefferies, LLC and Jefferies International Limi...

Excerpt: ... Custom Woodworking, Inc. Navigators' Motion for Summary Judgment The Court GRANTS Defendant and Cross-Complainant Navigators Insurance Company's (“Navigators”) motion for summary judgment as to its Cross-Complaint for Rescission, etc. against Plaintiffs and Cross-Defendants Michael Favreau (“Favreau”) and Favreau Custom Woodworking, Inc. (“FCW”), and also GRANTS Navigators' summary judgment motion on Plaintiffs' Complaint based on it...

Excerpt: ...ollowing findings: (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 to achieve the overriding interest. Inter-Con's primary arguments in support...

Excerpt: ... 38, 46-49, 57 and 61, and Request for Production of Documents nos. 5-79) and requested sanctions of $4,785 against Defendant and its counsel in connection with each of the two motions. The hearing has been continued twice as the parties have been meeting and conferring and providing further responses. As a result, as far as the Court can determine, the issues are narrowed to the following requests for production of documents (Nos. 1-3) and speci...

Excerpt: ...serve a proposed order pursuant to Cal. Rules of Court, Rule 3.1362(e). On or before April 30, 2018, counsel is ordered to file an amended notice of motion and motion, a proposed order, and proof of service showing that all of the documents were served on the client and other parties in this matter. ...

Excerpt: ...ons to the Navarro Declaration (ROA 152) are all OVERRULED. In the First Amended Complaint, Plaintiff alleges, among other things, various Labor Code violations, including that Defendant R.J. Noble Company failed to pay Plaintiff for all hours worked, including time spent loading materials, fueling the trucks, preparing tools and equipment, traveling to and from the job sites, waiting time, and driving for over 8 hours straight if such time was s...

Excerpt: ...w evidence), finding that Plaintiff failed to establish the elements of commonality, superiority and ascertainability. Specifically, the Minute Order states: “Whether a putative class member may allege a violation of CC § 1940.1 or CC § 52.1 against Defendant is a threshold question that will require individualized scrutiny – i.e., on the day a putative class member was forced to check out, was the facility the primary residence for at leas...

Excerpt: ...w evidence), finding that Plaintiff failed to establish the elements of commonality, superiority and ascertainability. Specifically, the Minute Order states: “Whether a putative class member may allege a violation of CC § 1940.1 or CC § 52.1 against Defendant is a threshold question that will require individualized scrutiny – i.e., on the day a putative class member was forced to check out, was the facility the primary residence for at leas...

Excerpt: ... Unpaid Overtime; (2) Unpaid Minimum Wages; (3) Non-Complaint Wage Statements; (4) Unpaid Business Expenses; (5) Wages not timely paid on termination; (6) Unlawful Wage Deductions; (7) Failure to Provide Seating; (8) PAGA claims; and (9) Violation of B&P Code § 17200. All of these claims stem from Plaintiff's allegations that she was not compensated for off-the-clock (“OTC”) time that she spent working at home and going through the bag-check...

Excerpt: ...17; as of August 2, 2017, 4 putative Class Members had opted out. (The current total number of opt- outs is 5, per Ex. A to the Martinez Decl.) Thereafter, Defendant turned over a class list with names and addresses only, refusing to provide phone numbers. At the 1/10/18 Status Conference, the Court ordered Defendant “to provide the putative class member phone numbers to plaintiff no later than 1/31/18.” (ROA 86) Alternatively, Defendant was ...

Excerpt: ...rbitration. The Court GRANTS Defendants' motion, noting that Defendants have agreed to waive the Limitations Period in Section 2 of Article VII of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Defendant's request (ROA 117) for judicial notice is GRANTED. Plaintiff's request (ROA 129) for judicial notice is GRANTED. Plaintiff's objection (ROA 143) to the evidence Defendants submitted on reply, consisting of the prior February 1, 2012 to January 31, 2015 CB...

Excerpt: ...800 Battery (“1-800”), Richard Keller et al seeking, among other things, quiet title to the property. In this lawsuit, Plaintiffs contend that Defendant Lazo was authorized on behalf of 1-800 to sell the property to Plaintiffs, and that “Plaintiffs purchased the Property in good faith and for value, without actual or constructive notice of any adverse claim to the Property.”(FAC ¶¶ 17, 20) A subsequent action, 16-879920 (the “2016 Act...

Excerpt: ...l not extend to any hearsay statements contained therein. The Court DECLINES to rule on any objections (ROA 1968) because “the court need rule only on those objections to evidence that it deems material to its disposition of the motion.” (CCP § 437c(q).) Insurance Defendants previously filed two motions for summary judgment/summary adjudication against Plaintiffs based on the Fourth Amended Complaint, which had remaining a single cause of ac...

Excerpt: ...ss- Complaint is DENIED in its entirety. With respect to the request of Plaintiffs/Cross- Defendants Linda M. Rodger and Nancy Ann Maggio as Co-Trustees of The Virginia Richards Revocable Intervivos Trust Dated May 1, 1986 and North County BRS Project, LLC (collectively, “BRS”) for judicial notice (ROA 123), the Court GRANTS judicial notice of Exhs. B-C and J, except that judicial notice will not extend to any hearsay statements contained the...

Excerpt: ...amages is vested in the plaintiff on a particular day. (Civil Code § 3287(a).) The test for determining “certainty” is whether Defendants actually know the amount owed or could have computed the amount from reasonably available information. (Wisper Corp. v. California Commerce Bank (1996) 49 Cal.App.4th 948, 960.) The “certainty” requirement concerns whether there is a factual dispute about the amount of damages, regardless of whether th...

Excerpt: ...elevant evidence is admissible by judicial notice.” (Golden Gate Land Holdings LLC v. East Bay Regional Park District (2013) 215 Cal.App.4th 353, 366.) The Court did not consider the federal district court cases against Holding Corp. in ruling on this motion, so specific orders and documents in those cases are not relevant. The threshold issue of whether Plaintiffs are employees of Imperial Girls and/or IEC is not at issue here. (ROA 122, Motio...

Excerpt: ...all be submitted as well. As to the Settlement: 1. Please provide estimates and calculations for the total potential value of all claims. Also, the class size of 1,983 was as of 07/31/17. (Settlement ¶¶ 1.39, 3.1.) Please provide an update on the class size and provide calculations based on the revised class size. 2. As to the requested enhancement payment, at final approval Plaintiff is to submit a declaration that addresses the factors set fo...

Excerpt: ...bers” 3. Para. 18, p. 4, l. 26: “and the Class Members” 4. Para. 18, p. 4, l. 27: “and the Class Members” 5. Para. 18, p. 5, l. 2: “and the Class Members” 6. Para. 19, p. 5, l. 5: “and the Class Members” 7. Para. 20, p. 5, l. 9: “and the Class Members” 8. Para. 21, p. 5, l. 11: “and the Class Members” [nos. 1-8 have already been deleted and are not found in the Corrected 6AC] 9. Para. 25, p. 5, ll. 25-26: “and is in a ...

Excerpt: ... class claims set forth in first through seventh causes of action, to allow him to proceed in court with his eighth cause of action for PAGA violations, and to deny the motion to arbitrate as moot. (ROA 271.) Although it is not expressly stated, the Court construes Petersson's request to dismiss the first through seventh causes of action as a request to dismiss the claims in their entirety—both class and individual claims. Petersson is to confi...

Excerpt: ...ill be effective on the filing of the proof of service of the Order upon the client. Motion for Entry of Judgment The Court's current thinking is to GRANT the motion for entry of judgment and ACCEPT Gray1's proposed judgment because it better protects Gray1's right to be paid on its judgment lien before Gulfstream can obtain title and possession to the foreclosed properties. That being said, the Court is considering delaying entry of judgment in ...

Excerpt: ...n the related case, OCSC no. 2016-00880632, the Court GRANTS in part and DENIES in part, as more specifically set forth in the ruling in the related case. The Court notes that the portions of the documents sought to be sealed are virtually the same, except that the page numbers may be different. With respect to those portions of the record receiving approval for sealing, the Court finds: (1) There exists an overriding interest that overcomes the ...

Excerpt: ...tion Costs Petitioner seeks to tax $3,776.23 of the requested $13,240.37 in deposition costs, as excessive and not reasonable or necessary. He takes issue with two items: (1) the charge of $1,876.23 for Respondent's counsel's travel costs for his deposition; and (2) the $2,500 appearance fee for his expert, Dr. Wolfe at deposition. As to the travel costs for Petitioner's deposition, the Court GRANTS Petitioner's request, but in the reduced amount...

Excerpt: ... trust petition hearing. Two motions (ROA 275 and 295) were filed by Petitioner Deutsche Bank National Trust Company, solely as Trustee for the Securitized Asset Backed Receivables LLC Trust 2007-BR2 (“Trustee”) and two other motions (ROA 302 and 311) were filed by Non-Party WMC Mortgage, LLC (“WMC”). It appears that both the Trustee and WMC are seeking to seal the same or similar records, so the Court will consider the motions together. ...

Excerpt: ...econd and third causes of action in the Complaint pursuant to CCP § 425.16. Preliminary Issues Defendants' request for judicial notice is GRANTED. (ROA 10.) Plaintiff WRW Properties, LLC's request for judicial notice (ROA 54-58) is DENIED as to Exhs. 2-4, 6, 16, and 33-36, and GRANTED as to Exhs. 1, 5, 7-15, and 17-32. Defendants' objections (ROA 68) were considered in ruling on Plaintiff's request for judicial notice. With respect to the Meyer ...

Excerpt: ...larity in the proceedings of the court, jury or adverse party, or any order of the court or abuse of discretion by which either party was prevented from having a fair trial. [¶¶] 6. Insufficiency of the evidence to justify the verdict or other decision, or the verdict or other decision is against law. [¶] When a new trial is granted, on all or part of the issues, the court shall specify the ground or grounds upon which it is granted and the co...

Excerpt: ...ANTED as to Exh. 1 and DENIED as to Exhs. 2-3. (ROA 32.) Defendant's request for judicial notice is DENIED (ROA 36), and Plaintiff's objection is SUSTAINED (ROA 40). Furthermore, as to the exhibits denied, “[o]nly relevant evidence is admissible by judicial notice.” (Golden Gate Land Holdings LLC v. East Bay Regional Park District (2013) 215 Cal.App.4th 353, 366.) As an initial matter, Defendant correctly contends that the FAA applies to the ...

Excerpt: ...intiff and his counsel, jointly and severally. The requests in dispute essentially ask Plaintiff to produce all documents in support of the allegations in the operative complaint. There is good cause to seek documents related to Plaintiff's contentions. Once the moving party shows good cause to justify discovery of the requested materials, the burden shifts to the responding party to justify the objection. (Kirkland v. Superior Court (2002) 95 Ca...

Excerpt: ... to Strike 4)Plaintiffs Daisy Martinez and Douglas Lindgren's Joinder in Defendant's Motion to Strike Before the Court is Defendant Inter-Con Security Systems, Inc.'s (“Defendant”) motion for an order striking from the record (1) Plaintiff Daniel Piggue's (“Piggue”) Opposition to Motion for Preliminary Approval and all papers filed in support thereof, and (2) and his Reply in support of Motion for an Order to Deem Counsel Inadequate and/o...

Excerpt: ...rt OVERRULES objection to ¶ 30 and SUSTAINS all other objections. The Court OVERRULES objections to the Fichter Declaration (ROA 51) and the Newman Declaration (ROA 79). The Court GRANTS Edison's request for judicial notice. (ROA 46.) General Law Where, as here, a motion for prejudgment possession is opposed, the Court may grant the requested relief if it finds each of the following: (A) The plaintiff is entitled to take the property by eminent ...

Excerpt: ...ine version showing all changes, deletions, and additions shall be submitted as well. Notwithstanding this continuance, the parties are required to appear on March 2 for the status conference in this case. As to the Settlement: 1. For those claims in the operative 4AC that are not part of this Settlement, Plaintiff intends to dismiss certain claims and pursue others. (Settlement ¶¶ 45, 78.) Moreover, on 02/27/18 Defendant filed a motion to cons...