Excerpt: ...award of sanctions pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure §§ 128.5 and 128.7, contending Judgment Debtor Gilman's motion for fees on appeal, filed on July 24, 2019, was filed in bad faith and was frivolous and devoid of any merit. Regarding Judgment Debtors' request for sanctions pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure § 128.5, the Court is not persuaded that the conduct at issue warrants sanctions under this provision. In ruling on the motion, the C...

Excerpt: ...restitution, challenging the water rate structure adopted by respondent Foresthill Public Utility District (“the District”) on June 25, 2014. Petitioner sought a declaration that the District's water rate structure violated Proposition 218, California Constitution, Article XIIID, restitution of all fees and charges collected in violation of Proposition 218, a permanent injunction prohibiting the billing and collection of water charges or fees...

Excerpt: ...rson (2009) 179 Cal.App.4th 775, 787. The court assumes the truth of all facts properly pleaded, and accepts as true all facts that may be implied or reasonably inferred from facts expressly alleged, unless they are contradicted by judicially noticed facts. Evans v. City of Berkeley (2006) 38 Cal.4th 1, 6. However, the court does not assume the truth of contentions, deductions, or conclusions of facts or law. Id. Plaintiff's complaint alleges tha...

Excerpt: ... plaintiff's allegations or the accuracy of the described conduct. Bader v. Anderson (2009) 179 Cal.App.4th 775, 787. The court assumes the truth of all facts properly pleaded, and accepts as true all facts that may be implied or reasonably inferred from facts expressly alleged, unless they are contradicted by judicially noticed facts. Evans v. City of Berkeley (2006) 38 Cal.4th 1, 6. However, the court does not assume the truth of contentions, d...

Excerpt: ...��Murray”) fails to establish compliance with the meet and confer requirements of Code of Civil Procedure section 430.41(a). For the purpose of ruling on the instant demurrer, the court will excuse this defect. Defense counsel is advised that any future demurrers must demonstrate compliance with Code of Civil Procedure section 430.41(a). 3 Murray's demurrer to the first amended complaint is overruled in part, and sustained in part with leave to...

Excerpt: ...questions of law or fact. Walker v. Walker (1960) 177 Cal.App.2d 89, 91‐92. The purpose of consolidation is to promote trial convenience and economy by avoiding duplication of procedure, especially with respect to the proof of issues common to both actions. See McClure, on Behalf of Caruthers v. Donovan (1949) 33 Cal.2d 717, 722‐723. Consolidation rests within the sound discretion of the trial court. 9 Plaintiffs seek to consolidate an unlimi...

Excerpt: ...ore causes of action alleged in the complaint. Code Civ. Proc. § 437c(f)(1). A moving defendant has the initial burden of showing that a cause of action has no merit, or there is a complete defense to the cause of action. Code Civ. Proc. § 437c(p)(2). If defendant meets its initial burden, the burden shifts to plaintiff to show the existence of a triable issue of material fact as to the cause of action or defense. Code Civ. Proc. § 437c(p)(2)....

Excerpt: ...ader v. Anderson (2009) 179 Cal.App.4th 775, 787. The court assumes the truth of all facts properly pleaded, and accepts as true all facts that may be implied or reasonably inferred from facts expressly alleged, unless they are contradicted by judicially noticed facts. Evans v. City of Berkeley (2006) 38 Cal.4th 1, 6. However, the court does not assume the truth of contentions, deductions, or conclusions of facts or law. Id. Plaintiff's third cau...

Excerpt: ...tests the legal sufficiency of the pleadings, not the truth of the plaintiff's allegations or the accuracy of the described conduct. Bader v. Anderson (2009) 179 Cal.App.4th 775, 787. The court assumes the truth of all facts properly pleaded, and accepts as true all facts that may be implied or reasonably inferred from facts expressly alleged, unless they are contradicted by judicially noticed facts. Evans v. City of Berkeley (2006) 38 Cal.4th 1,...

Excerpt: ...prior hearing. The instant motion relates to defendant Elmira Abraamyan's motion to amend or withdraw deemed admissions of December 11, 2018. On December 10, 2018 the court published a tentative ruling granting the motion. Plaintiff requested oral argument, and the court conducted 2 a hearing. The court recalls plaintiff's arguments. Generally speaking he argued concerning the sufficiency of the moving papers and the authorities relied upon in th...

Excerpt: ...ndant or any defendant resides at the commencement of the action”. Defendants admit that defendant Paul D. Booth, in his capacity as trustee of the Anything Trust dated October 12, 2007 (“Booth”) is a resident of Placer County. Further, pursuant to Probate Code section 17005(a)(1), the proper county for commencement of a proceeding concerning a trust is “[i]n the case of a living trust, the county where the principal place of administrati...

Excerpt: ...Default judgment was entered against defendant on June 20, 2008. This motion was filed over ten years later, on January 2, 2019. As defendant's motion was not timely made under the requirements of the applicable statute, it must be denied. Code Civ. Proc. § 473.5; Trackman v. Kenny (2010) 187 Cal.App.4th 175, 180. ...

Excerpt: ...v. Proc. § 430.10(e). A demurrer tests the legal sufficiency of the pleadings, not the truth of the plaintiff's allegations or the accuracy of the described conduct. Bader v. Anderson (2009) 179 Cal.App.4th 775, 787. The court assumes the truth of all facts properly pleaded, and accepts as true all facts that may be implied or reasonably inferred from facts expressly alleged, unless they are contradicted by judicially noticed facts. Evans v. Cit...

Excerpt: ...on (2009) 179 Cal.App.4th 775, 787. The allegations in the pleadings are deemed to be true no matter how improbable the allegations may seem. Del E. Webb Corp. v. Structural Materials Co. (1981) 123 Cal.App.3d 593, 604. The court assumes the truth of all facts properly pleaded, and accepts as true all facts that may be implied or reasonably inferred from facts expressly alleged, unless they are contradicted by judicially noticed facts. Evans v. C...

Excerpt: ... Inc. and Ryan Zierman move for summary adjudication as to their fifth cause of action for violation of the California Franchise Investment Law (“CFIL”) and seventh cause of action for violation of the Unfair Competition Law (“UCL”). 4 A plaintiff may move for summary adjudication if it contends that there is no affirmative defense to one or more causes of action alleged in the complaint. Code Civ. Proc. § 437c(f)(1). A moving plaintiff ...

Excerpt: ...not filed until December 27, 2018. Defendant 3 contends that she was not personally served, but does not adequately rebut the presumption of proper service established by the proof of service filed January 17, 2013. See Floveyor Int'l, Ltd. v. Superior Court (1997) 59 Cal.App.4th 789, 795. Further, defendant fails to show that her lack of notice in time to defend was not caused by inexcusable neglect. Tunis v. Barrow (1986) 184 Cal.App.3d 1069, 1...

Excerpt: ...ether the memoranda of costs were properly served. The court granted Gilman's request, and continued the hearing on this motion. The court has now considered Gilman's supplemental briefing re: service of memorandum of costs as well as the judgment creditors' response to supplemental memorandum, and issues the following tentative ruling: Gilman asserts that the memoranda of costs were not properly served pursuant to the Enforcement of Judgments La...

Excerpt: ...ng objections are overruled. Ruling on Motion Plaintiff and cross‐defendant City of Roseville (“City”) moves for summary judgment or summary adjudication as to the cross‐complaint filed by defendant and cross‐ complainant Abacus Solutions Inc. (“Abacus”). “[T]he party moving for summary judgment bears the burden of persuasion that there is no triable issue of material fact and that he is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.”...

Excerpt: ... cause of action alleged in the crosscomplaint. “[T]he party moving for summary judgment bears the burden of persuasion that there is no triable issue of material fact and that he is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Aguilar v. Atlantic Richfield Co. (2001) 25 Cal.4th 826, 850. A defendant moving for summary judgment bears the burden of persuasion that one or more elements of the cause in action cannot be established, or that there is...

Excerpt: ...nts' notice of nonstipulation is untimely and ineffective. Plaintiff's objections to evidence are ruled on as follows: Objection Nos. 1 and 2 are overruled. Objection No. 3 is sustained. Plaintiff United Specialty Insurance Company moves for summary judgment and/or summary adjudication as to its two causes of action for declaratory relief. “[T]he party moving for summary judgment bears the burden of persuasion that there is no triable issue of ...

Excerpt: ...ions, courts do not impose such a sanction lightly. In this case, defendants and cross‐complainants Sonora Gasoline Corporation and Gurraj Singh Grewal have failed to respond to discovery requests served in December 2017, failed to substitute in new counsel after their prior attorney died unexpectedly, failed to respond to significant meet and confer efforts, have not opposed multiple motions filed by plaintiff, and 4 failed to serve discovery ...

Excerpt: ...ion to compel and a motion to deem requests for admission admitted, which were set to be heard on July 10, 2018. The notice of motion for the current motion acknowledges the other pending motions, predicts that defendants will fail to oppose the motions or respond to the discovery, and asserts that the matter “will be ripe” at the time this motion. Terminating sanctions are an extreme sanction for those cases where misuses of the discovery pr...

Excerpt: ... Grand Cherokee. The complaint in this action was filed June 2, 2016. The 2 parties settled the case on September 19, 2017, after the first day of trial. Defendants agreed to pay plaintiffs $140,000 in settlement of the action. Civil Code section 1794(d) authorizes the recovery of attorneys' fees to a buyer who prevails in an action under that section, “determined by the court to have been reasonably incurred by the buyer in connection with the...

Excerpt: ....App.4th 775, 787. The court assumes the truth of all facts properly pleaded, and accepts as true all facts that may be implied or reasonably inferred from facts expressly alleged, unless they are contradicted by judicially noticed facts. Evans v. City of Berkeley (2006) 38 Cal.4th 1, 6. However, the court does not assume the truth of contentions, deductions, or conclusions of facts or law. Id. The demurrer is sustained as to plaintiff's first ca...

Excerpt: ...is the claimant who bears the burden of proof to establish the probable validity of its claims. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 405.30, 405.32. Plaintiff seeks to enforce an alleged oral agreement to sell real property. Such an agreement is barred by the statute of frauds. Civ. Code § 1624 (a)(3). Plaintiff argues that defendants are estopped from asserting the statute of frauds due to her performance under the terms of the alleged agreement. Specifically,...

Excerpt: ...uant to the preliminary injunction granted in this case. The use of the subject roadway by plaintiff's guests, customers and/or business invitees was an issue which was identified in plaintiff's initial moving papers as a basis for the necessity of the injunction, and it is appropriate to clarify this use as permissible based on the court's prior order. Defendants' request to modify the preliminary injunction to require plaintiff to obtain liabil...

Excerpt: ...gatories, or made a good faith effort to obtain information from available sources under the defendant's control in order to respond. 6 Plaintiff is awarded sanctions from defendant and his counsel, jointly and severally, in the amount of $760. Code Civ. Proc. § 2030.300(d). Motion to Compel Further Responses to Special Interrogatories Plaintiff's Motion to Compel Further Responses to Special Interrogatories is granted. Defendant's responses to ...

Excerpt: ...notice attached as Exhibit A to the Declaration of Wendy York, at the time, date and location designated by plaintiffs. Plaintiffs are awarded sanctions of $1,260 from defendant Roseville Point Health and Wellness Center, LLC dba Solnus Three, LLC and its counsel of record, jointly and severally. Motion to Compel Deposition of Defendant's Person Most Knowledgeable re Organizational Structure Plaintiffs' unopposed Motion to Compel Deposition of De...

Excerpt: ...thout substantial justification. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 2030.290(c), 2031.300(c), 2033.290(d). Motion to Compel Depositions Plaintiff's Motion to Compel Depositions is granted in part, and denied in part. The motion is denied as to the depositions of defendants' persons most qualified and technicians. Based on the current trial date, the discovery cut‐off date for non‐expert discovery has already passed. While the court may allow discovery proc...

Excerpt: ...a derivative action the court may require plaintiff to post a bond if it finds “there is no reasonable possibility that the prosecution of the cause of action alleged in the complaint against the moving party will benefit the corporation or its shareholders.” (Corp. Code § 800(c)(1).) The action will have no benefit to the corporation or shareholders if plaintiff would be unlikely to prevail. Marble v. Latchford Glass Co. (1962) 205 Cal.App....

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Excerpt: ...derson (2009) 179 Cal.App.4th 775, 787. The allegations in the pleadings are deemed to be true no matter how improbable the allegations may seem. Del E. Webb Corp. v. Structural Materials Co. (1981) 123 Cal.App.3d 593, 604. Defendants demur to the second cause of action for negligent hiring, third cause of action for battery, and eighth cause of action for intentional infliction of emotional distress. Each of the challenged causes of action is ba...

Excerpt: ...om Sutter Roseville Hospital and Roseville Police Department relating to events involving decedent on the evening of October 16, 2017. Pursuant to this qualified protective order, plaintiff and all parties to this action are: (1) Prohibited from using or disclosing the protected health information of Natasha Reedy for any purpose other than the instant litigation; and (2) Required to return or destroy any protected health information of Natasha R...

Excerpt: ...ichfield Co. (2001) 25 Cal.4th 826, 850. If the moving party carries its initial burden of production to make a prima facie showing that there are no triable issues of material fact, the burden shifts to the opposing party to make a prima facie showing of the existence of a triable issue of material fact. Id. Plaintiff sets forth evidence showing that defendant entered into a written credit card account agreement with plaintiff, that plaintiff co...

Excerpt: ...icy favors the arbitration of disputes, and doubts should be resolved in favor of deferring to arbitration proceedings.” Rowe v. Exline (2007) 153 Cal.App.4th 1276, 1282; Laswell, supra, at p. 1405. Under both federal and state law, a threshold question for any petition to compel arbitration is whether there exists an agreement to arbitrate. Cruise v. Kroger Co. (2015) 233 Cal.App.4th 390, 396. It is the petitioner that carries this initial bur...

Excerpt: ...d discovery that “Kidd Towing”, the entity which filed the prejudgment claim of right to possession and entered into a stipulation for entry of judgment with plaintiff, is a corporation identified as Kidd Automotive & Tow with the California Secretary of State. It is well established that a corporation cannot appear in court with legal representation. Merco Const. Engineers, Inc. v. Municipal Court (1978) 21 Cal.3d 724; Caressa Camille, Inc. ...

Excerpt: ..., who unexpectedly died during the pendency of this action. Following counsel's death, on or about January 25, 2018, no substitution of attorney has been filed. A corporation cannot appear in an action in propria persona, and must be represented in most court proceedings through an attorney. Merco Const. Engineers, Inc. v. Municipal Court (1978) 21 Cal.3d 724, 731. Nevertheless, the rule requiring representation by an attorney does not mean the c...

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Excerpt: ...ry obligations may lead the court to find an abuse of the discovery process and award sanctions on that basis. Laguna Auto Body v. Farmers Ins. Exchange (1991) 231 Cal.App.3d 481, overruled on other grounds in Garcia v. McCutchen (1997) 16 Cal.4th 469, 478, fn. 4 ...

Excerpt: ...otice of motion sets forth no statutory authority for the request for sanctions. Self‐represented litigants cannot recover attorney fees as discovery sanctions. Argaman v. Ratan (1999) 73 Cal.App.4th 1173, 1179. Plaintiff fails to establish that the cost of obtaining the transcript of the underlying Labor Board hearing is reasonably related to expenses incurred in filing the instant motion to compel. The court may not impose fines or penalties ...

Excerpt: ...., the evidence submitted by plaintiff establishes that CSUN Solar, Inc. initiated and negotiated terms of the subject contract between plaintiff and defendant China Sunergy (US) Clean Tech, that plaintiff directed payments as required by that contract to CSUN Solar, Inc., and that CSUN Solar, Inc. sent updated invoices reflecting changes in terms to the contract to plaintiff, which reflected the same invoice number as the original contract. (Dec...

Excerpt: ...s or the accuracy of the described conduct. Bader v. Anderson (2009) 179 Cal.App.4th 775, 787. The allegations in the pleadings are deemed to be true no matter how improbable the allegations may seem. Del E. Webb Corp. v. Structural Materials Co. (1981) 123 Cal.App.3d 593, 604. The court assumes the truth of all facts properly pleaded, and accepts as true all facts that may be implied or reasonably inferred from facts expressly alleged, unless th...

Excerpt: ... constitute a cause of action. Code Civ. Proc. § 430.10(e). A demurrer tests the legal sufficiency of the pleadings, not the truth of the plaintiff's allegations or accuracy of described conduct. Bader v. Anderson (2009) 179 Cal.App.4th 775, 787. The allegations in the pleadings are deemed to be true no matter how improbable the allegations may seem. Del E. Webb Corp. v. Structural Materials Co. (1981) 123 Cal.App.3d 593, 604. Plaintiffs' first ...

Excerpt: ...for leave to amend, plaintiff sets forth numerous facts which she would add to the amended complaint to buttress the claim. The court takes no position at this time as to whether the proffered facts are sufficient to state a valid cause of action for elder abuse. Plaintiff is granted leave to amend. Any amended complaint shall be filed and served on or before July 20, 2018. Motion to Strike In light of the ruling on the demurrer to complaint, Sut...

Excerpt: ...ion (“the State”) moves for summary judgment of plaintiff James Lucido's claim for premises liability and plaintiff Janet Lucido's claim for loss of consortium, under the doctrine of primary assumption of risk, or Government Code section 830.2. 2 Summary judgment may be granted where there is no triable issue as to any material fact, and moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Code Civ. Proc. § 437c(c). Defendants moving for...