Excerpt: ...LC, after the loan servicing was transferred. 2. Other Causes of Action The motion of this defendant for judgment on the pleadings as to the remaining causes of action is DENIED. Nearly 25 years ago the plaintiff and his then-spouse (a defaulted defendant here) were involved in a marital dissolution. During the distribution of assets and debts, a dispute arose over encumbrances placed on certain real property by the wife. The issue was litigated ...

Excerpt: ...l be filed (Code Civ. Proc., § 404), or nothing will be done. Demurrer (HDR Engineering) The demurrer of defendant HDR Engineering, Inc., to the second, fifth, and sixth causes of action of the first amended complaint (ROA 32) is OVERRULED with 15 days to answer. Second Cause of Action (Negligent Misrepresentation) Each element of a cause of action for negligent misrepresentation generally must be alleged with a specificity that shows how, when,...

Excerpt: ...otions meet the first prong. The third cause of action alleges protected activity under the First Amendment; i.e., the filing of an FPPC complaint during an election campaign about election activity. It is further undisputed that the third cause of action must be stricken because the filing of an FPPC complaint, even one that may contain false allegations, is protected speech that may not be subject to judicial oversight. The first two causes of ...

Excerpt: ... it. Each side then explains what the various marks, and absence of marks, meant relative to that paragraph and the agreement. The plaintiff even accuses defendant Wendy Alexander of submitting a fabricated version of the agreement with a check mark next to Paragraph 6.6. She demands that Alexander bring the original to court, and she proposes to testify at the law and motion hearing, apparently to prove the document was altered. Alexander oppose...

Excerpt: ... of interest and acted in bad faith in approving the Consulting Agreement, thus abrogating the Rule. Fourth and Fifth Causes of Action for Accounting The primary argument is that the plaintiff does not plead she does not have access to the corporate records, or that her claims can only be addressed by an accounting. It is clear from a fair reading of the amended complaint that the plaintiff asserts she does not have access to the corporate books ...

Excerpt: ...ifornia, resulted in the plaintiff transferring money that ultimately went to the defendants here in California. For purposes of pleading, the allegations are sufficient to establish Orange County as a proper venue. The ten causes of action are sufficient pled to withstand the demurrer. Motion to Strike The motion of the defendants to strike punitive damages and other allegations from the Complaint is DENIED. Sufficient facts are stated that woul...

Excerpt: ...o carry out normal activities. The plaintiffs alleged the deceased had a “mental limitation that restricted her ability to carry out normal activities and to protect her rights.” (Third Am. Complaint, 8:25-27; RAO 146.) The motion for summary adjudication suggests the deceased was not a dependent adult because she had no limitations that would prevent her from carrying out her normal activities. It says she “was able to walk, feed herself, ...

Excerpt: ...ourt may not impose issue, evidentiary, or terminating sanctions for a party's failure to pay sanctions. It may impose such sanctions only for the failure to provide further verified responses. That said, the Court is concerned because prior filings suggest the primary defendant is in prison in Vietnam and may be unable to provide the further responses. On the other hand, the defendants are represented by counsel and counsel has failed to explain...

Excerpt: ...e. The responses comply with the requirements of Code of Civil Procedure section 2033.220, Subdivision (c). The plaintiff complains that the defendants or their attorney had access to information (such as the CHP Report) that was readily available and intentionally chose not to use it before responding. But a court cannot order a further response to a request for admission that has been unqualifiedly denied, even if the facts involved are unquest...

Excerpt: ...ual statements within the review, and the defendant failed to take down the entire review when asked to do so. First prong It appears the subject matter meets the first prong of the anti- SLAPP test: the submitting of a Yelp review is clearly in furtherance of a party's First Amendment right. (Code Civ. Proc., § 425.16, subd. (b)(1).) Second Prong The critical issue appears to be whether the plaintiff—a for- profit, post-secondary school—is ...

Excerpt: ...ird Cause of Action for products liability. Evidentiary Objections The defendant's evidentiary objections to the declaration of Nadia Bayazid is SUSTAINED as to Nos. 1, 2, and 3, and OVERRULED as to Nos. 4 and 5. Request for Judicial Notice The defendant's Request to take Judicial Notice of Exhibits 1 and 2 is GRANTED. The defendant's Request to take Judicial Notice of certain unpublished federal District Court opinions (Exhibits 3, 4, and 5) is ...

Excerpt: ...for example, the defendants had conflicts of interest and entered into the Consulting Agreement in bad faith. Fourth and Fifth Causes of Action The defendants fail to point out where in the Second Amended Complaint the plaintiff alleges a specific damage claim. Thus, causes of action for accounting are proper. Sixth Cause of Action This cause of action is not barred by the two-year statute of limitations because it relates back. This cause of act...

Excerpt: ...o the Third Amended Complaint. (See ROA 254, 257.) On April 22, 2019, defendant Preferred Hotel Group filed an ex parte request to continue the then trial date of May 20, 2019 (see ROA 264), on the ground that it had been recently brought in and had a right to file a motion for summary judgment. The Court granted the ex parte request and set the current trial date of October 21, 2019. This date was selected in open court with the assistance of co...

Excerpt: ...ther allegations from the Complaint is DENIED. The basis of the motion is evidence outside the confines of the Complaint and not otherwise subject to a request for judicial notice. Notice Notice for the three motions above shall be given by the plaintiff. Order to Show Cause re Sanctions No tentative. Defendant Dao, a self-represented attorney, should be prepared to explain why he has, for the second time, filed a motion months out when there wer...

Excerpt: ... plaintiff may plead inconsistent claims. But when there is a cause of action for breach of contract, the plaintiff is precluded from also alleging a separate cause of action for quasi-contract that does not deny the existence of the contract. (See Klein v. Chevron U.S.A., Inc. (2012) 212 Cal.App.4th 1342, 1389-1390.) Fifth Cause of Action—Fraud There are no facts alleged that would support a claim that the defendant had no intention of perform...

Excerpt: ...d Complaint was to be filed within 10 days of the order. A “proposed” Fourth Amended Complaint had been “received” by the Court on March 6, 2019 (ROA 148); i.e., six days earlier, but that pleading was never filed, only received, and no subsequent amended complaint was filed with the Court in accordance with the Court's March 12 order. In the interests of justice, and because the parties appear to accept the amended complaint received Mar...

Excerpt: ...ent inducement” and “concealment,” and seeks general as well as punitive damages. This is the heart of the Complaint. They allege the defendant manufacturer knew that: (a) the transmissions were defective; (b) these safety defects are not repairable; (c) the defects were not publicly known; and, (d) the defects in this vehicle were not disclosed but actively concealed from the plaintiffs at the time of the dealer sale and repair attempts. T...

Excerpt: ...Sue letter and are barred by the applicable statute of limitations. Those arguments have merit as the Second Amended Complaint is now pled. The plaintiff has attempted to resolve that issue by procuring an amended Right-to-Sue letter which he has now filed with the Court. (ROA 118.) Because there is a jurisdictional burden on the plaintiff to plead the timely filing of a sufficient complaint with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, the...

Excerpt: ...ht to bring this action. But as indicated below, the Court will not take judicial notice of “Exhibit 3” to the Complaint: such an “exhibit” was not attached to what was filed with the Court. Even so, the parties agree as to the language of the assignment. A fair reading of the assignment from Downey Savings could be that while the plaintiff is not entitled to receive the percentage rents, it is entitled to one-third of the percentage rent...

Excerpt: ...eferred the matter to arbitration. All court proceedings were stayed pending the arbitration award. On May 3, 2019, the plaintiff filed a motion to vacate and set aside the stipulation and order on the ground plaintiff's counsel mistakenly, inadvertently, and excusably believed the defendant would pay the arbitration fees pursuant to Armendariz. (Code Civ. Proc., § 473.) Counsel says he first became aware that JAMS would require his client to pa...

Excerpt: ... State Bar has concurrent jurisdiction. (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 9.40(f).) If it is true that attorney Reiland failed to advise the Court and the State Bar of his professional move, that would appear at best to be an ethical lapse by Robert Reiland and Mario Palencia better addressed by the State Bar. Finally, the Court notes that neither Robert Reiland nor his supervising California attorney, Mario A. Palencia (SBN 300315), have filed oppositi...

Excerpt: ...of Service on Summons and Complaint, service on Saif Almarri was by substituted service on his wife. Service was not complete until 10 days after mailing, or May 9, 2019. Because the hearing was set for May 30, 2019, service had to be completed by May 7, 2019. Thus, Almarri did not receive adequate notice. There is No Showing of a Contract The documents attached to the declaration of Dr. Leaf are an e- mail thread and a general proposal of what i...

Excerpt: ...ounds. Summary Judgment The defendant does not appear to meet its initial burden because it does not address one of the bases for the complaint; i.e., that the defendant did not advisethe plaintiff of his legal options as to the right to seek damages for breach of contract. Where does the defendant even deny this allegation? The motion argues instead that the defendant's filing of an amended complaint that includes a cause of action for breach of...

Excerpt: ...be used to pay the mortgages on the respective properties, but the defendant kept the money instead. Such a theory is outside the terms of the arbitration agreement. The defendant counters that he was hired to represent the plaintiff in court. (See Reply 2:11-12.) But there is no indication any lawsuits were filed or that he took any action to maintain any litigation. It is not even clear reading the agreement that litigation was the focus of the...

Excerpt: ...n the stock market with the gains used to pay the property taxes. In his motion, the defendant concedes this second option, and no evidence is presented showing when the plaintiff became aware the HELOC funds had not been used for this other purpose. The defendant thus did not meet the initial burden to show these causes were time-barred. The suggestion that the plaintiff was on notice that the funds had not been invested in the stock market beca...