Excerpt: ...f's on November 12, 20221, in Garden Grove, California, causing Plaintiff to suffer personal injuries. On July 18, 2023, the court entered an order relieving Kelsey Gitlin as counsel for Plaintiff. As such, Plaintiff is self-represented. On May 24, 2023, Defendants filed motions to compel Plaintiff to serve responses to: (1) Special Interrogatories, Set One, (2) Form Interrogatories, Set One, and (3) Requests for Production, Set One. Defendants a...

Excerpt: ...dit application and personal guaranty, or they authorized their signatures to the credit application and personal guaranty. In the alternative, Plaintiff alleges defendants are estopped from denying the enforceability of the credit application and personal guaranty. (Complaint, '1 11.) Plaintiff alleges the defendants are each other's agents, and the actions alleged in the Complaint were within the course and scope of such agency. (Complaint, '1 ...

Excerpt: ...oo, is disobeying a court order to provide discovery. (ld., subd. (g); Van Sickle v. Gilbert (2011) 196 Cal.App.4th 1495, 1516.) 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, 991.) Once a party is ordered by the court to provide responses to discovery, continued failure to respond may result in the imposition of more severe sanctions. (See Code...

Excerpt: .... (County of San Diego v. Gorham (2010) 186 Cal.App.4th 1215, 1225-1227.) A judge may issue a preliminary injunction against a defendant only if the court has personal jurisdiction over that defendant. (Rothschild v. Erda (1968) 258 Cal.App.2d 750, 753.) Here, Plaintiff provided no proof of service of summons or complaint on Defendant. Absent service of summons, the court lacks personal jurisdiction over Defendant, and no valid order can be issue...

Excerpt: ... taken of any matter unless authorized or required by aw.' [Citation.] Matters that are subject to judicial notice are listed in Evidence Code sections 451 and 452. A matter ordinarily is subject to judicial notice only if the matter is reasonably beyond dispute. [Citation.] Although the existence of a document may be judicially noticeable, the truth of statements contained in the document and its proper interpretation are not subject to judicial...

Excerpt: ...Chevron Corp. (2021) 66 Cal.App.5th 288.) Code of Civil Procedure section 998, subdivision (b), provides, "Not less than 10 days prior to commencement of trial or arbitration ..., any party may serve an offer in writing upon any other party to the acton to allow judgment to be taken or an award to be entered in accordance with the terms and conditions stated at that time. The written offer shall include a statement of the offer, containing the te...

Excerpt: ...rt DENIES the Moton as to Item Nos. 1-2, 5-9, 12, 15, 18, 20-27, 32-35, 37, 41, 55-57, 59, 64-65, 70, 74-79, 83-86, 89- SO, 93-102, 104-107, 109, and 112-116 of the District Attorney's Privilege Log. Statement of Law The scope of discovery is broad, and doubts concerning the permissibility of discovery are generally resolved in favor of allowing discovery. (Code Civ. Proc., S 2017.010; Advanced Modular Sputtering, Inc. v. Superior Court (2005) 13...

Excerpt: ...nciples Re Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings " 'A motion for judgment on the pleadings is equivalent to a demurrer and is governed by the same de novo standard of review.' " (People ex rel. Harris v. Pac Anchor Transportation, Inc. (2014) 59 Cal.4th 772, 777; see Marzec v. Public Employees' Retirement System (2015) 236 Cal.App.4th 889, 900 '[b]ecause a moton for judgment on the pleadings is the functional equivalent of a general demurrer, the ...

Excerpt: ...act in which Defendant purchased from Plaintiff's assignor a 2016 Ford-150, VIN FTEWIEP8GKE17123. Plaintiff alleges that it is the holder of a first priority security interest in the motor vehicle. Plaintiff alleges that Defendant is in default and stopped making payments starting from 4/21/2022. There is, as of the time of the complaint, $31,461.60 still owed under the contract. On July 6, 2023, Plaintiff applied for writ of possession ofthe veh...

Excerpt: ...filed a late reply, which the court has also reviewed and considered. A. Legal Standard for Writ of Attachment "Provisional relief in the form of an attachment is available for money claims based on breach of contract." (Pech v. Morgan (2021) 61 Cal.App.5th 841, 854.) Statutory Requirements. A moving party must establish the following for a writ of attachment: Upon the filing of a complaint or anytime thereafter, a plaintiff may apply for a right...

Excerpt: ...: Sex Discrimination (FEHA) • C/A 2: Harassment (FEHA) • C/A 3: FEHA Retaliation Plaintiff alleges that while she was an employee for the LLC Defendants, Antonio Perez and other kitchen staff were sexually harassing her. Plaintiff alleges that Perez had previously worked for the LLC Defendants and had been fired for sexual harassment, but was rehired. Plaintiff alleges that because she refused Perez's advancements, Perez refused to help Plain...

Excerpt: ...v. Atlantic Richfield Co. (2001) 25 Cal.4th 826, 843.) "A party may move for summary judgment in an action or if it is contended that the action has no merit or that there is no defense to the action or (CINIe Civ. Proc., S 437c, subd. (a)(l).) "The motion for summary judgment shall be granted all the papers submitted show that there is no triable issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law...

Excerpt: ...1.310(b)(1).) To establish cause," the burden is on the moving party to demonstrate both: (1) relevance to the subject matter (e.g„ how the information in the documents would tend to prove or disprove some issue in the case), and (2) specific facts justifying discovery (e .g., why such information is necessary for trial preparation or to prevent surprise at trial). (Glenfed Develop. Corp. v. Super. Ct. (1997) 53 Cal.App.4th 1113, 1117.) Specifi...

Excerpt: ... of Contract, (2) Account Stated, and (3) 800k Account. Plaintiff alleges that it entered into a written commercial agreement with Defendant, where Plaintiff agreed to provide services to Defendant for a fee. (Complaint, 11 & Ex. 1.) The parties signed the agreement on November 23, 2020, and, pursuant to the agreement, Defendant agreed to pay service fees to Plaintiff through April 2024. (ld., "1 12 & 16.) The agreement also provided that Plainti...

Excerpt: ...51-452.) In ruling on a demurrer, a court must accept as true all allegations of fact contained in the complaint. (Blank v. Kirwan (1985) 39 Cal.3d 311, 318.) A demurrer challenges only the legal suffciency of the affected pleading, not the truth of the factual allegations in the pleading or the pleader's ability to prove those allegations. (Cundiff v. GTE Cal. , Inc. (2002) 101 Cal.App.4th 1395, 1404-05.) Questions of fact cannot be decided on d...

Excerpt: ...pleading on any one or more of the following grounds: (e) The pleading does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action. (f) The pleading is uncertain. As used in this subdivision, 'uncertain' includes ambiguous and unintelligible." (CINIe Civ. Proc., S 430.10, subds. (e) & (f)l ; see S 430.50, subd. (a) [demurrer may be taken to whole pleading or to any of the causes of action stated therein].) 1 All further statutory references a...

Excerpt: ... court's discretion, they are reasonably necessary to the conduct of the litigation rather than merely convenient or beneficial to its preparation. (Sanford v. Rasnick (2016) 246 cal.App.4th 1121, 1132; see code Civ. Proc., S Defendant seeks $1,895.00 in filing and motion fees, for: - $435 answer; - $840 for 14 motions in limine; - $500 MS]; and - $120 for two ex parte applications to contnue trial The filing and motion fees appear on their face ...

Excerpt: ...e all three actions or, alternatively, to consolidate the instant action (Case 1) with Four Seasons Restoration, Inc. v. Douglas R. oods, et al.; Case No. 30-2021- 01190072 (Case 3). Douglas oods and April 20akum join in the instant moton and, in the alternative, stipulate to consolidate the instant action (Case 1) with Four Seasons Restoration, Inc. v. Douglas R. oods, et al.; Case No. 3C)-2021-01190072 (Case 3). For the following reasons, the m...

Excerpt: ...t to exercise the option to produce writings under Section 2030.230, as well as any objection to the interrogatories, including one based on privilege or on the protection for work ... ." (Code Civ. Proc., S 2030.290(a).) Plaintiff Sunshine Care Centers, LLC shall provide responses, without objections, to Defendant's Form Interrogatories, Set One within 30 days of service of notice of ruling. Defendant's request for sanctions is granted. Sunshine...

Excerpt: ...f Implied Warranty of Fitness, (3) Breach of Express Warranty, (4) Failure to Promptly Repurchase Product, (5) Failure to Commence Repairs Within a Reasonable Time, (6) Failure to Complete Repairs Within 30 days, (7) Failure to Maintain Sufficient Service and Repair Facilities, (8) Failure to Make Service Literature and Parts Available, (9) Advertising Defective Merchandise without Disclosing Defects, (10) Conversion, (11) Negligence, and (12) Vi...

Excerpt: ...20) 55 Cal.App.5th 136, 145.) "under section 187, the trial court is authorized to amend a judgment to add additional judgment debtors.... As a general rule, 'a court may amend its judgment at any time so that the judgment will properly designate the real defendants.'.... Judgments may be amended to add additional judgment debtors on the ground that a person or entity is the alter ego of the original judgment debtor.... 'Amendment of a judgment t...

Excerpt: ...terminating, issue, evidentiary and/or monetary sanctions in the amount of $6,009.50. Plaintiffs contend that the parties attended an informal discovery conference before the court on July 7, 2023, after which the parties met and conferred. The parties later entered into a stipulation, which the court signed as an Order on August 10, 2023. The Order required Defendant to serve responses to multiple sets of discovery without objection, to produce ...

Excerpt: ....30.) A cross-complaint is "related" to the complaint if it arises out of the same transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences as the complaint. (Code Civ. Proc., S 426.10(c).) All other cross-complaints are permissive crosscomplaints. Code of Civil Procedure Section 426.50 provides that: "A party who fails to plead a cause of action subject to the requirements of this article, whether through oversight, inadvertence, mistak...

Excerpt: ...the first and fourth causes of action and OVERRULED as to the third cause of action. The demurrer of Defendants Marlene Goren, Shari Ten Eyck, and Ten Eyck Real Estate to the eight cause of achon is SUSTAINED with leave to amend. The motions to strike the punitive damages allegations are GRANTED with leave to amend. FACTS/OVERVIEW On June 15, 2023, Plaintiff Charles Castro filed the operative First Amended Complaint against Defendants: • Cies F...

Excerpt: ...ar v. Atlantic Richfield Co. 25 Cal.4th 826, 850.) "A prima facie showing is one that is sufficient to support the position of the party in question." (ld. at 851.) A defendant moving for summary judgment satisfies his or her initial burden by showing that one or more elements of the cause of action cannot be established or that there is a complete defense to the cause of action. (CINIe Civ. Proc. ("CCP"), S 437c(p)(2).) The scope of this burden ...

Excerpt: ...time in its discretion, strike out "any irrelevant, false, or improper matter inserted in any pleading." "Irrelevant" matters include allegations not essential to the claim, allegations neither pertinent to nor supported by an otherwise sufficient claim, or a demand for judgment requesting relief not supported by the allegations of the complaint. (Code Civ. Proc., S 431.10, The grounds for a moton to strike must appear on the face of the pleading...

Excerpt: ...o indication any of the Defendants served objections to the Notices of Taking Deposition. Plaintiff Jennifer Young and Defendants exchanged emails and engaged in a telephonic conference on June 24, 2023. (J. Young Decl. 14.) Following the call, Defendants' counsel sent an email indicating that Defendants do not oppose a deposition. (J. Young Decl. 918, Ex. 11.) Defendants contend, however, that questions regarding a party's immigration status, in...

Excerpt: .... (2001) 25 Cal.4th 825, 843.) "A party may move for summary judgment in an action or proceeding if it is contended that the acton has no merit or that there is no defense to the action or proceeding." (Code Civ. Proc., S 437c, subd. (a)(l)l . ) "The motion for summary judgment shall be granted if all the papers submitted show that there is no triable issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of...

Excerpt: ...is that a section 998 offer must be strictly construed in favor of the party sought to be subjected to its operation." (Barella v. Exchange Bank, supra, 84 Cal.App.4th at p. 799, 101 Cal.Rptr.2d 167; **849 Elite Show Services, Inc. v. staffpro, Inc., supra, 119 cal.App.4th at p. 268, 14 cal.Rptr.3d 184.) Timed Out LLC v. 13359 corp. (2018) 21 Cal.App.5th 933, 942 [230 Cal .Rptr.3d 842, 848—849] " ' "[Closts" of a civil action consist of the exp...

Excerpt: ...Agreement The Arbitration Agreement at issue prov-des in pertinent part: It is understood that any dispute as to medical malpractice, that is as to whether any medical services rendered under this contract were unnecessary or unauthorized or were improperly, negligently, or incompetently rendered or not rendered, will be determined by submission to arbitration as provided by the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. Section 1 etseq ("F.A.A.").... It ...

Excerpt: ...ac vice applications. For the reasons set forth below, the Motion to Intervene and the pro hac vice applications are all GRANTED. Pending Motions On April 6, 2023, Gulfstream filed a motion to intervene. Gulfstream argues that mandatory intervention applies because Gulfstream claims an interest in property that is the subjection of this action—the Tooling. Cadence, which is not a party to the contracts that memorializes Gulfstream's alleged own...

Excerpt: ...P Nos. 76-78 request documents relating to the subject store's vault, including the training provided to employees regarding verification of the contents of the vault, policies and procedures regarding verification of the contents of the vault, and policies and procedures for filling out the "Vault Admittance" document. Defendant Costco responded asserting various objections. In its supplemental responses, Defendant Costco states: "Costco is will...

Excerpt: ...subd. (b).) The court may, upon any terms as may be just, relieve a party or his or her legal representative from a judgment, dismissal, order, or other proceeding taken against him or her through his or her mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect." (Code Civ. Proc., S 473, subd. (bj.) "Notwithstanding any other requirements of this section, the court shall, whenever an application for relief is made no more than six months after en...

Excerpt: ...cause of action (civil rights violations) is SUSTAINED without leave to amend. The demurrer to the third cause of action (civil rights violations) is OVERRULED as to Defendant Brown and SUSTAINED without leave to amend as to Defendant Journey. The demurrer to the fourth cause of action (negligence) is OVERRULED The demurrer to the fifth cause of action (negligent retention and supervision) is OVERRULED. A demurrer challenges the defects appearing...

Excerpt: ...t to attach order and writ of attachment. (Code Civ. Proc., S 484.010.) Following a hearing on the application, the court shall issue a right to attach order it finds all of the following: (1) The claim upon which the attachment is based is one upon which an attachment may be issued; (2) The plaintiff has established the probable validity of the claim upon which the attachment is based; (3) The attachment is not sought for a purpose other than th...

Excerpt: ...considering demurrers, courts read the allegations liberally and in context. (Wilson v. Transit Authority of City of Sacramento (1962) 199 Cal.App.2d 716, 720-21.) In a demurrer proceeding, the defects must be apparent on the face of the pleading or via proper judicial notice. (Donabedian v. Mercury Ins. Co. (2004) 116 Cal.App.4th 968, 994. "A demurrer tests the pleading alone, and not on the evidence or facts alleged." (E-Fab, Inc. v. Accountant...

Excerpt: ...d this requirement. (McNeil Dec.) A demurrer presents an issue of law regarding the sufficiency of the allegations set forth in the complaint. (Lambert v. Carneghi (2008) 158 Cal.App.4th 1120, 1125.) The challenge is limited to the "four corners" of the pleading (which includes exhibits attached and incorporated therein) or from matters outside the pleading which are judicially noticeable under Evidence Code SS 451 or 452. Although California cou...

Excerpt: ...adding or striking out the name of any party, or by correcting a mistake in the name of a party, or a mistake in any other respect; and may, upon like terms, enlarge the time for answer or demurrer. The court may likewise, in its discretion, after notice to the adverse party, al ow, upon any terms as may be just, an amendment to any pleading or proceeding in other particulars; and may upon like terms allow an answer to be made after the tme limit...

Excerpt: ...d that Plaintiff "is informed and believes [that Circelli] is (l) an officer of CHICAGO TITLE INSURANCE COMPANY; (2) a member of the executive team of defendant FIDELITY NATIONAL FINANCIAL, INC. and (3) Chief Human Resources Offcerfor FIDELITY NATIONAL FINANCIAL, INC." (ld.) The Circelli Deposition Notice lists 9 categories of inspection demands. (ld.) CTIC served objections to the Circelli Deposition Notice on May 1, 2023. (Lucal Dec., '1 7 and ...

Excerpt: ...t prejudice to the extent it seeks the production of additional documents. On receipt of a response to a demand for inspection, the demanding party may move for an order compelling a further response if the demanding party deems that any of the following apply: (1) A statement of compliance with the demand is incomplete; (2) A representation of inability to comply is inadequate, incomplete, or evasive; (3) An objection in the response is without ...

Excerpt: ...laintiffs Vince Rinner ("Vince"), Diana Rinner ("Diana"), Nicholas Estanislau ("Nicholas"), and Laura Estanislau ("Laura") (collectively, "Plaintiffs") commenced this action against defendants Brian Hoyt ("Brian"), Alain Hoyt ("Alain"), William Kalpakoff ("William"), and Sandra Kalpakoff ("Sandra") (collectively, "Defendants"). (ROA 2). Plaintiffs allege they own real property adjacent to an easement that included a flood control channel ("Carbon...

Excerpt: ... or her through his or her mistake, inadvertence, surprise or excusable neglect." Relief under Code of Civil Procedure section 473, subdivision (b) may be based either on an "attorney affdavit of fault," in which event, relief is mandatory, or on declarations or other evidence showing "mistake, inadvertence, surprise or excusable neglect," in which event relief is discretionary. (Weil & Brown, Cal. Practice Guide: Civil Procedure Before Trial (Th...

Excerpt: ...quest for judicial notice is DENIED as to the remaining exhibits. (Eivd. Code S 452.) The webpages do not consist entirely of facts "that are not reasonably subject to dispute and are capable of immediate and accurate determination by resort to sources of reasonably indisputable accuracy." (Evid. Code S 452(h).) California's long-arm statute permits courts in California to exercise jurisdiction "on any basis not inconsistent with the Constitution...

Excerpt: ..., or the economy and effciency of handling the litigation would be promoted thereby, on moton of a party, after notice and hearing, make an order, no later than the close of pretrial conference in cases in which such pretrial conference is to be held, or, in other cases, no later than 30 days before the trial date, that the trial of any issue or any part thereof shall precede the trial of any other issue or any part thereof in the case, except fo...

Excerpt: ...gh contnuances of trials are disfavored, each request for a continuance must be considered on its own merits. (Cal. Rules Ct., Rule 3.1332(c).) A party moving to continue trial must make an affrmatve showing of "good cause" justifying the requested relief. (See Cal. Rules Ct., Rule 3.1332(c).) In addition, the motion must be made "as soon as reasonably practical once the necessity for the continuance is discovered." (Cal. Rules Ct., Rule 3.1332(b...

Excerpt: ...pril 26, 2023, the court ordered Defendant Anthony Bell to serve verified responses without objections to Plaintiff's Form Interrogatories , Set Two, Special Interrogatories, Set Two, and Requests for Production of Documents, Set Two within 30 days of service of notice of ruling. (ROA No. 183, [04/25/23 Minute Order].) Plaintiff's counsel served notice of the ruling on Defendant Robert Bell on April 27, 2023. (Stark Decl. '1 8, Ex. A; ROA No. 201...

Excerpt: ...me of a party, or a mistake in any other respect; and may, upon like terms, enlarge the time for answer or demurrer. The court may likewise, in its discretion, after notice to the adverse party, allow, upon any terms as may be just, an amendment to any pleading or proceeding in other particulars; and may upon like terms allow an answer to be made after the time limited by this code." (Code Civ. Proc., S 473, subd. (a)(l).) Amendments to pleadings...

Excerpt: ...onstitute a cause of action. (f) The pleading is uncertain. As used in this subdivision, 'uncertain' includes ambiguous and unintelligible." (Code Civ. Proc„ S 430.10, subds. (e) & (f)l; see S 430.50, subd. (a) [demurrer may be taken to whole pleading or to any of the causes of action stated therein].) "A person against whom a complaint or cross-complaint has been filed may, within 30 days after service of the complaint or cross-complaint, demu...

Excerpt: ...s confidentiality is required by law, court records are presumed to be open.” (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 2.550(c); In re Marriage of Tamir (2021) 72 Cal.App.5th 1068, 1079.), However, “[t]hese rules do not apply to discovery motions and records filed or lodged in connection with discovery motions or proceedings. However, the rules do apply to discovery materials that are used at trial or submitted as a basis for adjudication of matters other ...

Excerpt: ...he deposition until the day before (Id. at ¶ 4.) On January 30, 2023, Plaintiff's counsel stated that he was unable to confirm whether his client would appear for deposition on January 31, 2023. (Id. at ¶ 4.) On January 31, 2023, neither Plaintiff nor her counsel appeared for the deposition. (Id. at ¶ 5.) Defendant took a Certificate of Non-Appearance. (Id. at Ex. C.) On February 1, 2023, Defendant served a Notice of Second Continuance of Taki...