Excerpt: ...marily to chill the defendant's exercise of First Am endment rights.” Finton Construction, Inc. v. Bidna & Keys, APLC, 238 Cal. App. 4th 200, 208 (2015). The trial court engages in a two -step process to determine whether a special motion to strike should be granted. Code Civ. Proc., § 425.16(b)(1). First, the court decides whether the defendant has met its initial burden of establishing a prima facie showing that defendant's acts, of whic...

Excerpt: ...te covered by the agreement. Code Civ. Proc. § 1281.2. “The trial court m ay resolve motions to compel arbitration in summary proceedings, in which ‘[t]he petitioner bears the burden of proving the existence of a valid arbitration agreement by the preponderance of the evidence, and a party opposing the petition bears the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence any fact necessary to its defense. In these summary proceedings, the ...

Excerpt: ..., 49 (2018). “It then falls to plaintiff to counter with evidence creati ng a dispute about a fact relevant to that defense.” Id. “That is, the plaintiff must submit evidence that would allow a ‘reasonable trier of fact [to] find in plaintiff[‘s] favor on the statute of limitations issue.” Id. This is a wrongful death and surv ival action. Plaintiffs allege that the Decedent died from injuries sustained in an electrical fire that oc...

Excerpt: ...f the causes of action for breach of contract. The breach of contract claims involve an Equipment Finance Agreement (“EFA”) entered into by ST and Partners Capital Group (“PCG”). The original term was for 60 months with 60 payments of $4,990.46. The EFA notes that an advance payment of $4,990.46 was received and applied to the first monthly payment due with an y remainder to be applied to the last payment(s) due. The “Commencement Date...

Excerpt: ...ecessary to prevent prejudicing the party's int erest in the litigation.” Code Civ. Proc., § 36(a) (emphasis added); Weil & Brown, Cal. Practice Guide: Civil Procedure Before Trial (The Rutter Group 2023) ¶ 12:246:1 (“Trial priority is not mandatory and absolute merely because one of the parties is age 70. The court has discretion to determine the extent of that party's interest and find as a matter of fact the risk posed of that party...

Excerpt: ...n the deposition notice if, after service of a deposition notic e and without having served a valid objection, the party fails to appear for examination. A motion under Code of Civil Procedure § 2025.450(a) must be accompanied by a declaration under Code of Civil Procedure § 2016.040 or, when the deponent fails to att end the deposition and produce documents, by a declaration stating that the moving party contacted the deponent to inquire about...

Excerpt: ...rth below, the Court Þnds that the transfer and coordination will promote the ends of justice pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure § 404.1. The Court understands that counsel for Ganahl Lumber Company (“Ganahl”) expressed concern that the Merced Action cannot be transferred to this Court because it includes a cause of action for foreclosure of mechanics lien, and the property that is the subject of that claim is located in Merced County. Thi...

Excerpt: ...m (“Anna”) joins in the Opposition. This action involves two consolidated cases. The action arises out of a dispute over the family business, May Enterprises, LLC. The lead case, Kim v. Kim (Case No. 2021- 01183125), was initiated by Mira against her sisters (Defendants Gina Kim and Anna Kim), her parents (Defendants Kyong Su Kim aka Kyung Soo Kim and Myong Kil Kim) and May Enterprises, LLC. Mira alleges claims for, amongst other things, brea...

Excerpt: ...�'s Demand or Inspection and Destructive Testing. The Motion is GRANTED. However, the order is limited to those tests speciÞcally set orth in the Notice, which speciÞcally include: 1. Removing the bottom course o roo tile 3' in each direction rom the rain gutter spike and errule. 2. Removing the eave strip ßashing. 3. Removing the entire rain gutter. 4. Removing an area o stucco, likely 3' wide, rom eave to top o window. 5. Installing...

Excerpt: ...as to its legal and factual merit; and is subject to sanctions for violation of this certiÞcation. Code Civ. Proc. § 128.7; see also Murphy v. Yale Materials Handling Corp., 54 Cal. App. 4th 619, 623 (1997). The purpose of the statute is “to check abuses in the Þling of pleadings, petitions, written notices of motions or similar papers.” Musaelian v. Adams, 45 Cal. 4th 512, 514 (2009). The person presenting the paper to the Court impliedly...

Excerpt: ...thal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act does not apply to the commercial transaction underlying this action. Balboa also moves for an order striking Riojas' request for punitive damages. Balboa seeks judicial notice of the Equipment Finance Agreement and Personal Guaranty attached to the Complaint as Exhibits 1 and 2, respectively. Balboa's request is predicated on the fact that these documents are attached to the Complaint and constitute Court r...

Excerpt: ...e statutes, case, and textbooks cited in support of the position advanced.” Failure to include points and authorities supporting each ground for the motion may be treated as an admission that the motion is not meritorious, and as ground to deny it. California Rules of Court, rule 3.1113(a). The motion does not cite to authority to support amending the complaint and does not discuss leave to Þle a Second Amended Complaint. To the extent that Pl...

Excerpt: ...ement to enter into the contract, second cause o action or negligent misrepresentation, third cause o action or breach o written contract, ourth cause o action or breach o covenant o good aith and air dealing, tenth cause o action or recission and restitution ail, eleventh cause o action or intentional inßiction o emotional distress, and thirteenth cause o action or accounting. The Court rules as ollows: • The Demurrer to ...

Excerpt: ...ved a valid objection under Code o Civil Procedure section 2025.410, ails to appear or deposition, the party giving notice may move or an order compelling the deponent's attendance and testimony at deposition. The motion must be accompanied by a declaration under Code o Civil Procedure section 2016.040 stating that the moving party contacted the deponent to inquire about the nonappearance. Code Civ. Proc. § 2025.450(b)(2). Section 2025.450(...

Excerpt: ...ght of petition or free speech under the United States Constitution or the California Constitution in connection with a public issue shall be subject to a special motion to strike, unless the court determines that the plainti
¯ has established that there is a probability that the plainti
¯ will prevail on the claim. . . . (2) In making its determination, the court shall consider the pleadings, and supporting and opposing a
¯idavits stating the...

Excerpt: ...ehr, asserts that Defendant Thetford's bankruptcy case was discharged on August 28, 2023. The Court notes that there is no proof of service showing that the declaration was properly served. Counsel for Plainti
¯s is admonished to properly serve all future documents Þled with the Court and to Þle proofs of service as required. Despite the failure to properly serve the declaration, the Court takes judicial notice of the fact that Defendant Thetf...

Excerpt: ...mmons has not resulted in actual notice to a party in time to defend the action and a default or default judgment has been entered against him or her in the action, he or she may serve and file a notice of motion to set aside the default or default judgment and for leave to defend the action. The notice of moton shall be served and filed within a reasonable time, but in no event exceeding the earlier of: (i) two years after entry of a default jud...

Excerpt: ...required for the court to obtain jurisdiction over defendants. Code Civ. Proc. S 410.50(a); Ziller Electronics Lab GmbH v. Superior Court, 206 Cal. App. 3d 1222, 1229 (1988); Dill v. Berquist const. co., Inc., 24 cal. App. 4th 1426, 1439 (1994). Notice does not substitute for proper service. Ruttenberg v. Ruttenberg, 53 Cal. App. 4th 801, 808 (1997). "Until statutory requirements are satisfied, the court lacks jurisdiction over a defendant." pp. ...

Excerpt: ...on. A party may move for an order compelling further responses to interrogatories if the party deems an answer to be evasive or incomplete, an exercise of the option to produce documents under section 2030.230 is unwarranted or the required specification of the documents is inadequate, or an objection is without merit or too general. Code Civ. Proc. S 2030.300(a). Motions to compel further responses to interrogatories must be accompanied by a dec...

Excerpt: ...The 11 U.S.C. S 362 automatic stay only stays lawsuits against the debtor and the debtor's bankruptcy estate. The Secton 362 stay does not apply where, as here, the debtor is the plaintiff in a lawsuit. 11 U.S.C. S 362(a) (1)—(8).") (emphasis added). As to the merits, Defendant Five Boys Investments, Inc.'s ("Five Boys") Motion to Compel Arbitration is GRANTED. Plaintiff Wael Abdo is ordered to arbitrate her claims against Five Boys, with the e...

Excerpt: ...em because they were not parties to the written agreement and no basis has been pled by which to impute liability upon them. They contend that the attempt at pleading an alter ego theory of liability fails because the FAC only pleads conclusions with no facts. Detailed pleading is not required to allege an alter ego theory of liability. Indeed, "[i]t is not even essential, apparently, that the alter ego doctrine always be specifically pleaded in ...

Excerpt: ...aintiff's allegations lack the requisite specificity regarding Defendant's willful intent. "In an action for the breach of an obligation not arising from contract, where it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant has been guilty of oppression, fraud, or malice, the plaintiff, in addition to the actual damages, may recover damages for the sake of example and by way of punishing the defendant." Civ. Code, S 3294(a). "'Malice' ...

Excerpt: ...tion must state in writing the 'grounds upon which it will be made.'" Gonzalez v. Superior Court, 189 Cal. App. 3d 1542, 1545 (1987). "Only the grounds specified in the notice of motion may be considered by the trial court. This rule has been held to be especially true in the case of motions for summary adjudication of issues." ld. Based on the above, the existence of any triable issue, as to any claim justifies a denial of this motion. Similarly...

Excerpt: ...efendant contends the entire Crosscomplaint is uncertain because the causes of action are devoid of the necessary "ultimate facts" as it pertains to their claims against and that it is impossible to know what conduct on Cross-Defendant's part the Crosscomplainant is alleging caused the alleged injuries. A demurrer for uncertainty is not intended to reach the failure to incorporate sufficient facts in the pleading but is directed at the uncertaint...

Excerpt: ...efendant was ordered to Answer the Complaint within 15 calendar days of service of the Amended Complaint. With regard to the motion to strike, Plaintiff was ordered to file an amended Complaint not inconsistent with the above ruling. ld. However, instead of filing an Answer to the FAC, Defendant filed another demurrer on the same grounds to the same causes of achon that were previously overruled. Defendant previously demurred on the grounds of un...