Excerpt: ...ial Council form instructs "(each complaint must have one or more causes of action attached)." However, Plaintiff only attached the Judicial Council form for a breach of contract cause of action. He failed to attach forms for common counts and quantum meruit. (Weil & Brown, Cal. Practice Guide: Civil Procedure Before Trial (The Rutter Group 2022) '1 6: 202 ["Tort and contract complaints require attachments: The other Judicial Council form complai...

Excerpt: ...f which the court is permitted to take judicial notice. (Blank v. Kirwan (1985) 39 Cal. 3d 311, 318; Donabedian v. Mercury Ins. Co. (2004) 116 Cal.App.4th 968, 994.) Limited to the "four corners" as such, a pleading is adequate if it contains a reasonably precise statement of the ultimate facts, in ordinary and concise language, and with sufficient detail to acquaint a defendant with the nature, source and extent of the claim. (Leek v. Cooper (20...

Excerpt: ...ts Defendant Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S., Inc.'s ("WDPR") motions to compel further responses by Russell to: (1) form interrogatories, set one, nos. 2.5-2.8, 2.11, 6.1-6.7, 7.1-7.3, 9.1-9.2, 10.1-10.3, 11.1-11.2, 12.1-12.7, 13.1-13.2, 14.1- 14.2, and 17.1; (2) special interrogatories, set one; (3) requests for production of documents, set one; and (4) requests for admissions, set one. Background On September 2, 2022, the discovery at issue...

Excerpt: ...uld be denied because Moving Defendants failed to adequately meet and confer prior to filing the instant motion. (Opp., at p. 4.) The failure to sufficiently meet and confer is not a ground to grant or deny the motion to strike. (Code Civ. Proc., S 435.5, subd. Waiver Plaintiff argues that her counsel entered into an agreement with a representative of Traveler's Insurance on January 10, 2023 to extend the deadline to respond to the representative...

Excerpt: ...iled the instant motion. Defendant objects to the supplemental memorandum. Plaintiff failed to obtain leave of court prior to filing the supplemental memorandum. Nevertheless, the court exercised its discretion in considering the Plaintiff's supplemental memorandum. Under Code of Civil Procedure section 1281.4, upon request of a party, when the court orders a case to arbitration, it shall also stay the action until arbitration is completed. The p...

Excerpt: ...ify any objection or failure to fully answer the interrogatories. (Fairmont Ins. Co. v. Superior court (2000) 22 cal.4th 245, 255.) Defendant asserts that Plaintiff filed the instant motion "without warning" and thus prematurely cut short the meet and confer process. (Opp. at 2.) Prior to filing a motion to compel further responses, the moving party must meet and confer with the responding party in a reasonable and good faith attempt to informall...

Excerpt: ...led in this action on June 3, 2022. (Opp., at p. 2, fn. 1.) It is unnecessary to ask the court to take judicial notice of materials previously filed in this case. A party may "simply call the court's attention to such papers." (Weil & Brown, Cal. Practice Guide: Civil Procedure Before Trial (The Rutter Group 2021) g:53.1a.) Standing Bel Air Home contends Plaintiffs lack standing because they are bringing this action as successors-in-interest but ...

Excerpt: ...ontroversy thereafter arising out of such contract or transaction, or the refusal to perform the whole or any part thereof . . . shall be valid, irrevocable and enforceable, save upon such grounds as exist at law or in equity for the revocation of any contract." (g U.S.C. 2.) "The 'principal purpose' of the FAA is to 'ensur[e] that private arbitration agreements are enforced according to their terms.'" (Lacayo v. Catalina Restaurant Group Inc. (2...

Excerpt: ...v. State Farm Mutual Auto. Ins. co. (2012) 211 cal.App.4th 1, 8-9.) Defendant's Non-compliant Separate Statement In its notice, Defendant moved for summary judgment, or in the alternative summary adjudication "on the following grounds"' The undisputed evidence in this matter demonstrates that the DEFENDANT did act negligently. Further, DEFENDANT did not breach any duty owed to the PLAINTIFF since (1) DEFENDANT did not act recklessly while engagin...

Excerpt: ...aration, paragraphs 13 and 18, and Exhibits 12 and 17, are sustained. Defendant's remaining objections are overruled. Summary Adjudication Standard In both summary judgment and summary adjudication proceedings, the pleadings determine the scope of the relevant issues. (Port Medical Wellness, Inc. v. Connecticut Genera/ Life Ins. co. (2018) 24 cal.App.5th 153, 169; FPI Development v. Nakashima (1991) 231 Cal.App.3d 367, 381-382 [pleadings serve as...

Excerpt: ... Code section 3287, subdivision (a), is denied because the damages were not "liquidated." Subdivision (a) provides, in relevant part, that person who is entitled to recover damages certain, or capable of being made certain by calculation, and the right to recover which is vested in the person upon a particular day, is entitled also to recover interest thereon from that day, except when the debtor is prevented by law, or by the act of the creditor...

Excerpt: ...ginal ruling. (Code Civ. Proc., S 1008, subd. (a). ) The motion must also be accompanied by an affidavit from the moving party that states: (1) what application was previously made; (2) when and to what judge; (3) what order was made; and (4) what new or different facts, circumstances or law are claimed to be shown. (Code Civ. Proc., S 1008, subd. A party seeking reconsideration also must provide a satisfactory explanation for the failure to prod...

Excerpt: ...arty" is entitled to costs "as a matter of right." A "prevailing party" includes: (1) the party with a net monetary recovery; (2) a defendant in whose favor a dismissal is entered; (3) a defendant where neither plaintiff nor defendant obtains any relief; and (4) a defendant as against those plaintiffs who do not recover any relief against that defendant. (Code Civ. Proc., S 1032, subd. The court has no discretion to deny prevailing party status t...

Excerpt: ...er Code of Civil Procedure section 1281.2, Defendants move for an order compelling arbitration of all claims in the Complaint and Cross-complaint. Defendants contend arbitration is mandatory pursuant to an arbitration provision in the "Design-Build Construction GMP Contract" (the "Contract"), a copy of which is attached to the motion as well as to the Complaint. The arbitration provision is found under "Article 23," entitled "ARBITRATION OF DISPU...

Excerpt: ...eeming Plaintiff Darrell Hallett a vexatious litigant, for a prefiling order, and requiring Plaintiff to furnish security in this action. The court ordered supplemental briefing. (3/3/2023 Minute Order; see Le Francois v. Goel (2005) 35 Cal.4th 1094, 1108; Marriage of Barthold (2008) 158 cal.App.4th 1301, 1307-1308.) Having considered the parties' supplemental briefing, the court finds that only one aspect of the September 30, 2022 order that sho...

Excerpt: ... may claim reasonable attorney's fees here under Civil Code 51717(a) and C.C.P. S 1033.5(a)(10)(A). The fees claimed are for services provided by in-house attorneys. Reasonable fees for in house counsel's services may be recovered if not duplicative of services provided by other attorneys on the matter. (Mix v. Tumanjan Development Corp. (2002) 102 Cal.App.4th 1318, 1324; PLCM Group v. Drexler (2000) 22 cal.4th 1084, 1093.) Here, the fees claimed...

Excerpt: ...50 et seq.) protects consumers against numerous unfair and deceptive business practices specifically set forth in the CLRA and provides remedies and procedures for claims involving those practices. (Civ. Code, SS 1760, 1780- 1782.) At least 30 days before filing a suit seeking damages, the plaintiff must notify the potential defendant of the alleged violations and demand correction. (Civ. Code, S 1782.) This notice must be in writing and must be ...

Excerpt: ...pression, fraud or malice" toward plaintiff is not alone enough to render the employer liable for punitive damages. (See Civ. Code, S 3294, subd. (b).) Civil Code section 3294, subdivision (b) imposes punitive damages liability where the corporate employer itself acted egregiously or knowingly failed to act in connection with its wrongdoing employee. The employer is not punished for the employee's wrongful act but rather for its own wrongful cond...

Excerpt: ... asking Plaintiff to admit this. Plaintiff objected on the grounds the information sought was not relevant or reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence, was protected by his right to privacy, and that the requests violated Labor Code section 1171.5, Civil Code section 3339, and Government Code section 7285. In responding to RFAs, a party has a duty to answer as completely and straightforwardly as the information reason...

Excerpt: ...examination is requested, "the deponent shall designate and produce at the deposition those of its officers, directors, managing agents, employees, or agents who are most qualified to testify on its behalf as to those matters to the extent of any information known or reasonably available to the deponent." (Code Civ. Proc., S 2025.230.) A written objection to a deposition notice must be served at least three calendar days prior to the date for whi...

Excerpt: ...ing for summary judgment bears an initial burden of production to make a prima facie showing of the nonexistence of any triable issue of material fact. . . " (Ibid.) "A prima facie showing is one that is sufficient to support the position of the party in question." (ld. at p. 851.) Where a plaintiff seeks summary judgment, the burden is to produce admissible evidence on each element of a cause of action entitling him or her to judgment. (Code Civ...

Excerpt: ... includes the pleading, any exhibits attached, and matters of which the court is permitted to take judicial notice. (Blank v. Kirwan (1985) 39 Cal.3d 311, 318; Donabedian v. Mercury Ins. Co. (2004) 116 Cal.App.4th 968, 994.) A demurrer "admit(s) all the properly pleaded material facts" and "even the most improbable alleged facts" are accepted as true. (Nolte v. Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (2015) 236 Cal.App.4th 1401, 1406.) Breach of Written Cont...

Excerpt: ... the court may impose whatever sanctions are just, including issue sanctions, evidence sanctions, terminating sanctions, and monetary sanctions. (Code Civ. Proc., S 2023.030.) Imposition of sanctions for misuse of discovery lies within the trial court's discretion. (Doppes v. Bentley Motors, Inc. (2009) 174 Cal.App.4th 967, gel.) Once a party is ordered by the court to provide responses to discovery, continued failure to respond may result in the...

Excerpt: ... to strike portions of the SAC is denied in part and granted with 15 days leave to amend in part, as set forth below. Defendant seeks an order striking the following language from Plaintiff's SAC: 1) "DEFENDANTS' interference with ETEKCITY's right of possession to its Products has been done maliciously and oppressively." (SAC, at '1 47, p. 9:23-24.) 2) "DEFENDANTS' interference with ETEKCITY's contractual relationships has been done maliciously a...

Excerpt: ...performance or excuse for nonperformance, (3) defendant's breach, and (4) the resulting damages to plaintiff." (Coles v. Glaser (2016) 2 Cal. App. 5th 384, 391.) Plaintiffs allege breach of the written contracts: In 2016, Plaintiffs and Defendants entered into a series of contracts related to the opening of a potential Weinerschnitzel franchise including: (1) Advertising Association Agreement, (2) Franchise Agreement, (3) Addendum to the Franchis...