Excerpt: ...f any revised papers, including the class notice. Counsel also should provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the class notice, rather than with just a supplemental declaration or brief that simply asserts the issues have been resolved. Counsel must disclose whether there are any other pending class action, individual, or PAGA lawsuits, wheth...

Excerpt: ...er the gross settlement amount should be increased to render the settlement fair, adequate and reasonable. Although the settlement agreement contains an escalator clause, there is no indication as to whether the escalator clause has been triggered. Since the Administrator has not disclosed the date that remailed notice packets were sent out, it is not clear whether the deadline to opt out, object in writing, or dispute workweeks has passed. Moreo...

Excerpt: ... any revised papers, including the proposed letter to the aggrieved employees. Counsel also should provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the proposed letter to the aggrieved employees, rather than with just a supplemental declaration simply asserting that the issues have been resolved. As to the Settlement Agreement: 1. Notice to the LWDA w...

Excerpt: ...tayed pending completion of the arbitration. The Status Conference set for today is ordered off calendar. A Post- Arbitration Review Hearing is set for October 7, 2022 at 9:00 a.m. The parties must file a Joint Status Report at least a week before the hearing, and may request a continuance if arbitration is not yet complete. The court concludes that there exists a valid agreement to arbitrate the individual claims asserted by plaintiff, the Agree...

Excerpt: ...sed on the authority of Cole v. Town of Los Gatos (2012) 205 Cal. App. 4th 749, 764 n.6, that “where a trial court is confronted on summary judgment with a large number of nebulous evidentiary objections, a fair sample of which appear to be meritless, the court can properly overrule, and a reviewing court ignore, all of the objections on the ground that they constitute oppression of the opposing party and an imposition on the resources of the c...

Excerpt: ...uston Partners, LLC, William E. Bump, Thomas F. Scheidt, Ellen B. Friedman, Lawrence F. Leventon, Paul L. Cohen, Edward Henkin and Pat McRoberts. Defendants' Request for Judicial Notice is granted. It is appropriate for the court to take judicial notice of the status of an entity as listed on the Secretary of State's website. Newport Harbor Ventures, LLC v. Morris Cerrulo World Evangelism (2016) 6 Cal. App. 5th 1207, 1215. However, even though th...

Excerpt: ...apers, including the class notice. Counsel also should provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the class notice, rather than with just a supplemental declaration or brief that simply asserts the issues have been resolved. Counsel must disclose whether there are any other pending class action, individual, or PAGA lawsuits, whether filed with a...

Excerpt: ...f any revised papers, including the class notice. Counsel also should provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the class notice, rather than with just a supplemental declaration or brief that simply asserts the issues have been resolved. The motion fails to provide the class members' estimated low payment under the proposed settlement, informa...

Excerpt: ... rescind the annuities that form the basis of this lawsuit. However, the court in Major Clients Agency v. Diemer (1998) 67 Cal. App. 4th 1116, held that a claim for equitable indemnity must be based on a joint legal obligation to another for damages. 67 Cal. App. 4th at 1131. Here, if Daily improperly withheld the two letters, he could be liable to plaintiffs for malpractice, which is not a tort for which plaintiffs seek to hold these moving defe...

Excerpt: ...'s motion seems to request a blanket finding of privilege, as if every single communication between Peck and any of the 15 plaintiffs is privileged or subject to the joint defense doctrine. Presumably, Peck should inspect plaintiffs' privilege log, and perhaps the documents plaintiffs already produced, to attempt to establish good cause for a protective order. Defendants and plaintiffs must serve their papers on Peck by March 15, 2022, and Peck's...

Excerpt: ...'s and Cini-Little International, Inc.'s Requests for Judicial Notice are granted. When the corporate status of an insured has been suspended, the insurer has the right to intervene in the litigation against the insured to protect its interests. Garamendi v. Golden Eagle Ins. Co. (2004) 116 Cal. App. 4th 694, 709. The moving parties were insurers for defendant, cross-complainant and cross-defendant Rosser International, Inc., who has been suspend...

Excerpt: ...ayed pending completion of the arbitration. The Case Management Conference set for today is ordered off calendar. A Post-Arbitration Review Hearing is set for August 25, 2022 at 9:00 a.m. The parties must file a Joint Status Report at least a week before the hearing, and may request a continuance if arbitration is not yet complete. The court concludes that there exist valid agreements between plaintiff and defendants to arbitrate the individual c...

Excerpt: ... policy that should not have been sold to any investor because split- dollar agreements were no longer being recognized by the IRS as offering tax relief, that Johnston and NFP knew that selling such a policy was unsuitable for the Trust and inappropriate under industry standards, that NFP also knew that the Policy was inappropriate because Minnesota Life had previously refused to underwrite the Policy in 2014, that the sale of the Policy was for...

Excerpt: ...is denied. Defendant's responses are not code compliant. The requests mostly asked defendant to admit that a certain statement was made. Defendant's responses simply referenced some communications, without admitting or denying whether the requested statement was made. (Even though defendant “otherwise denied” all of the requests, this denial was legally insufficient in the context of the entire response.) Defendant failed to comply with the s...

Excerpt: ...blished that Faculty, Staff and Child Care Teacher Retirees have a vested right to be provided with District-funded benefits under the same medical plan as active employees, or that the District's Approved Policy Changes Effective July 1, 2022 are inconsistent with or breach any vested rights held by those Retirees. On August 9, 2021, the Board approved a health insurance plan to go into effect on July 1, 2022 that transitioned all Medicare eligi...

Excerpt: ...papers, including the class notice. Counsel also should provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the class notice. Plaintiffs Nichole Kec and Hopeton Dias have both brought this motion, and are both parties to the settlement agreement, yet plaintiffs seek an enhancement award only for plaintiff Nichole Kec, not for plaintiff Hopeton Dias. Plai...

Excerpt: ...s only parties whom the plaintiff sued. Parties are entitled to allege alternative claims for recovery, such as express indemnity and equitable indemnity, as well as declaratory relief. A cause of action is not uncertain just because a written agreement on which the claim is based might be uncertain. Defendant Manamed, Inc.'s Motion for Summary Adjudication as to Plaintiff Team Makena's Seventh Cause of Action for Misappropriation of Trade Secret...

Excerpt: ...uding the proposed letter to the aggrieved employees. The motion fails to provide the aggrieved employees' estimated individual recovery under the proposed settlement, including maximum, minimum and average workweeks, and estimated high, low and average payments to be paid to the aggrieved employees based on their workweeks, information that would enable the court to better evaluate the reasonableness of the settlement. The Settlement Agreement p...

Excerpt: ...papers, including the class notice. Counsel also should provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the class notice, rather than with just a supplemental declaration or brief simply asserting that the issues have been resolved. On May 18, 2021, the court signed the parties' proposed Order, based on the parties' stipulation, that the Flott and Ca...

Excerpt: ...Cleaning Services, Inc.'s Request for Judicial Notice is denied. All of plaintiff's individual claims are ordered to arbitration. Plaintiff's class claims are dismissed without prejudice. This action is ordered stayed pending completion of the arbitration. The Status Conference set for today is ordered off calendar. A Post-Arbitration Review Hearing is set for July 15, 2022 at 9:00 a.m. The parties must file a Joint Status Report at least a week ...

Excerpt: ...r policy and the life insurance policy at issue should be disregarded because plaintiffs fail to allege any facts as to how or by what method defendants allegedly participated, and to whom, how, and by what method the recommendation was made. This allegation, however, is legally sufficient, even if defendants question multiple people making one recommendation. Defendants may serve contention interrogatories to obtain more details. Defendants also...

Excerpt: ... 2019 WL 5078725. Under Del. Code §18-803(b), a limited liability company may prosecute or defend suits only until the time a certificate of cancellation is filed. However, under Del. Code §18-804(b)(3), an LLC that is dissolved is required to make provisions to be reasonably likely to cover compensation for claims that have not been made known to the LLC or arisen, but based on facts known to the LLC are likely to arise or become known within ...

Excerpt: ...for Judicial Notice is granted. NVSI's Request for Judicial Notice is granted. Eshelman's Objections to Evidence are sustained, except that Objection to Declaration of Ivan Stankevich #3 and Objection to Declaration of Alex Nelson #5 are overruled. The facts set forth in Eshelman's Separate Statement do not negate all of NVSI's allegations of wrongdoing against her. Many of the facts asserted to be undisputed are actually disputed. NVSI has prese...

Excerpt: ...hould provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement, rather than with just a supplemental declaration simply asserting that the issues have been resolved. The moving papers do not include a copy of the PAGA letter that was sent to the LWDA on June 10, 2019. The court needs a copy of the letter to verify that the settlement terms are consistent with the...

Excerpt: ... Order Granting Plaintiffs' Motion for Approval of PAGA Settlement and Final Judgment Thereon filed on March 9, 2018 defined aggrieved employees to include “any and all employees of Maruchan Inc., who performed work at any Maruchan facility in California during the time period running from April 14, 2014 through March 8, 2018”. Plaintiff alleges in paragraph 18 of her First Amended Complaint, “Plaintiff was hired in August 2015 and worked u...

Excerpt: ...ent on a motion to compel further responses to interrogatories, and Rule 3.1345(c) requires that the Separate Statement “provide all the information necessary to understand each discovery request and all the responses to it that are at issue”, “be full and complete so that no person is required to review any other document in order to determine the full request and the full response”, and “If the response to a particular discovery reque...

Excerpt: ...he court declines to rule on AIG Specialty Insurance Company's Objections to Evidence Submitted by Plaintiff in Opposition, on the ground that the objections are not material to the ruling on the motion. CCP §437c(q). Plaintiff's Request for Judicial Notice is granted. Defendant AIG contends that the main policy coverage provision at issue, Coverage A, does not provide coverage for the costs associated with the Fuel Line Claim and the PRL 354 Cl...

Excerpt: ...grant the motions, as Dirks proposes. Omar's initial briefs were one day late, and his reply briefs were ten days late, but there have been no objections. Kabran v. Sharp Memorial Hospital (2017) 2 Cal. 5th 330, 346. Dirks argues that Wardak was not a proper derivative plaintiff on behalf of WLOW because he no longer owned an interest in the LLC. The court in Favila v. Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP (2010) 188 Cal. App. 4th 189, 215, rejected such an...

Excerpt: ...r the oppositions, that would not mean the court would automatically grant the motions, as Dirks proposes. Omar's initial briefs were one day late, and his reply briefs were ten days late, but there have been no objections. Kabran v. Sharp Memorial Hospital (2017) 2 Cal. 5th 330, 346. Dirks argues that Wardak was not a proper derivative plaintiff on behalf of WLOW because he no longer owned an interest in the LLC. The court in Favila v. Katten Mu...

Excerpt: ...ration is not yet complete. The court concludes that there exists a valid agreement to arbitrate the claims asserted by plaintiff, the Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Agreement”), and that no grounds exist to bar enforcement of the Agreement. CCP §1281.2. The arbitration agreement waives class claims. Thus, case law provides for dismissal without prejudice of the class claims. Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis (2018) 138 Sup. Ct. 1612; Stolt-Niels...

Excerpt: ...nsation insurance for PSMG, but this case does not involve any workers' compensation insurance issues for any entity. Defendant Semaan can invoke his Fifth Amendment privilege if and when it becomes necessary, the likelihood and extent of which appear to be minimal, and the court can rule at that time if necessary. If Semaan is ever charged with crimes as to defendant The Original Wine Club, Inc., defendants may renew their request for a stay of ...

Excerpt: ... papers, including the class notice. Counsel also should provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the class notice, rather than with just a supplemental declaration or brief simply asserting that the issues have been resolved. The settlement agreement (in ¶51a.iii) and class notice (on p. 4) provide that the Administrator will resolve any wor...

Excerpt: ...ntiff's Evidentiary Objections are sustained as to #1 (third sentence only), #2 (first sentence only), and #4 (all except last sentence), and are otherwise overruled. Plaintiff's Objection to New Evidence is overruled. Espejo v. Southern California Permanente Medical Group (2016) 246 Cal. App. 4th 1047, 1060. Moreover, the court notes that plaintiff admits in his own declaration that he recognizes his signature on the Mutual Binding Arbitration A...

Excerpt: ...National Trust Co. (2011) 196 Cal. App. 4th 1366, 1375. Respondent Daniel Keith Larson's Request for Judicial Notice in his opposition on p. 1 is denied as overbroad, and because it violates Evidence Code §453(b), since it includes 2,208 documents. Respondent Daniel Keith Larson's request for his costs, fees and expenses incurred in responding to Petitioners' motion, pursuant to CCP §128.5, is denied as procedurally improper. Petitioners have f...

Excerpt: ... papers, including the class notice. Counsel also should provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the class notice, rather than with just a supplemental declaration or brief simply asserting that the issues have been resolved. Although the motion provides the estimated average payment to class members under the proposed settlement, it fails to...

Excerpt: ...f any revised papers, including the class notice. Counsel also must provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the class notice, rather than just a brief or supplemental declaration asserting that the issues have been resolved. The settlement agreement and the class notice require written objections and do not allow class members to speak at the...

Excerpt: ...leges that NNNRI was the formal advisor to G-Trust, and therefore owed fiduciary duties to the tenant in common owners of the properties. 4AC, ¶25. The demurrer by these defendants does not challenge the sufficiency of the allegations of breach against NNNRI. The Demurrer to the First Cause of Action by defendant Northwood Investors, LLC is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND, since plaintiff has failed to allege sufficient facts to show that North...

Excerpt: ...E, LP, is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND in full. In the First Cause of Action for Breach of Fiduciary Duty, plaintiffs adequately allege that defendants Mikles, Locoh, Sovereign Capital Management Group, Inc. (SCMG) and Infinity Urban Century, LLC (IUC) are alter egos of NNNRI and DPR, who were financial advisors to plaintiffs, and who therefore owed plaintiffs a fiduciary duty, and who allegedly breached that duty by duping plaintiffs into se...

Excerpt: ...rd Amended Complaint by defendants Northwood Investors, LLC, Northwood Employees, LP, Northwood Real Estate Partners, LP, and Northwood Real Estate Partners TE, LP, is SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND. The First Cause of Action is for Breach of Fiduciary Duty. Plaintiff adequately alleges that defendants Mikles, Locoh, Sovereign Capital Management Group, Inc. (SCMG) and Infinity Urban Century, LLC (IUC) are alter egos of NNNRI and DPR, who were f...

Excerpt: ...f any revised papers, including the proposed letter to the aggrieved employees. Counsel also should provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the proposed cover letter to the aggrieved employees, rather than with just a supplemental declaration simply asserting that the issues have been resolved. The release language used in the settlement agre...

Excerpt: ...nce set for December 9, 2021 is ordered off calendar. A Post-Arbitration Review Hearing is set for April 1, 2022 at 9:00 a.m. The parties must file a Joint Status Report at least a week before the hearing, and may request a continuance if arbitration is not yet complete. The court concludes that there exists a valid agreement to arbitrate the claims asserted by plaintiff and that no grounds exist to bar enforcement of the agreement. CCP §1281.2....

Excerpt: ...ual recovery under the proposed settlement, including maximum, minimum and average workweeks, and estimated high, low and average payments to be paid to the aggrieved employees based on their workweeks, information that would enable the court to better evaluate the reasonableness of the settlement. The definition of Released Claims used in the settlement agreement in Section I(V) on pp. 3-4 is too broad. Because the scope of a lawsuit is defined ...

Excerpt: ...language, they do not accept the truth of matters stated in those documents. Fontenot v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (2011) 198 Cal. App. 4th 256, 264-65; Herrera v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co. (2011) 196 Cal. App. 4th 1366, 1375. Defendant Velocity's objection to the Evidentiary Appendix, Exhibit 3, is sustained because the court sees no foundation for it, and defendant's other objections to the Evidentiary Appendix are overruled. Defendant Velo...

Excerpt: ... three Requests for Judicial Notice are granted. However, while courts may take judicial notice of public records and their dates, parties and legally operative language, they do not accept the truth of matters stated in those documents. Fontenot v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (2011) 198 Cal. App. 4th 256, 264-65; Herrera v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co. (2011) 196 Cal. App. 4th 1366, 1375. The standing issues in this case exist, at least in part, ...

Excerpt: ... the court on April 16, 2021, and therefore relevant for the court to consider in ruling on defendants' Motions to Quash, set for hearing on October 15, 2021. Contrary to plaintiffs' contentions, however, whether Northwood Investors operated as an advisor or manager to three entities that funded a Joint Venture known as NW Congress Center, LLC, which itself was based in California, is irrelevant to the jurisdictional analysis. Nor are plaintiffs ...

Excerpt: ...nd which does not exceed the reasonable costs to the local government of providing the service or product”. Thus, the portion of the City of Anaheim's Electric Utility fees that represents the reasonable cost to the City of providing the service is not a tax. But the City's Electric Utility also pays to the City's general fund an amount of up to 4% of the Electric Utility's gross revenue earned during the previous fiscal year. Plaintiff contend...

Excerpt: ...d papers, including the class notice. Counsel also should provide the court with an explanation of how the pending issues were resolved, with references to any corrections to the settlement agreement and the class notice, rather than with just a supplemental declaration simply asserting that the issues have been resolved. The court's file in the first case filed by plaintiff against defendant, Case No. 2020- 01136520, reveals that plaintiff settl...

Excerpt: ...f action under any legal theory, regardless of what label plaintiffs place on their cause of action, and whether they state facts disclosing some right to relief. Michaelian v. State Comp. Ins. Fund (1996) 50 Cal. App. 4th 1093, 1105; Cellular Plus, Inc. v. Superior Court (1993) 14 Cal. App. 4th 1224, 1231. In paragraphs 54-57 and 64 of their Third Amended Complaint, on pp. 27 and 30, plaintiffs allege that the towing of plaintiffs' vehicles viol...

Excerpt: ... Jose Garcia and Amado Sandria Zarate. Plaintiffs request a 45% attorney fee award, but that request is highly excessive. The usual attorney fee award in wage and hour class action cases is anywhere from 25% to 33 1/3%, with the most common award in federal court being 25% and the most common award in state court being 33 1/3%. On very rare occasions this court has awarded 35%, and plaintiffs here are being awarded 35% because of the amount of ti...

Excerpt: ...ded Complaint, and (3) Defendant Wolfgang F. Hahn's Demurrer to Plaintiff's First Amended Complaint, are all sustained with 20 days leave to amend. Defendant CalPrivate Bank's Joinder to Defendants Mikles Trust's and Other Defendants' Demurrer to First Amended Complaint is denied – CalPrivate Bank has its own demurrer and in any event must rely on allegations plaintiff makes against CalPrivate Bank, not against other defendants. All parties' Re...