Excerpt: ...forcement Officer Marcella Villanueva: Overrule Objections to Paragraphs 5, 11, 12, 13, 20, 25, 27, 30, 32 and Exhibits F and K; Sustain Objections to Paragraphs 8, 15, 18, 19, 23, 28, 29, 31 and Exhibits C, G, I, L. As to the Declaration of attorney Nazik Hasan: Overrule Objections to Paragraphs 4, 11, 12, 13, 14, 18, and Exhibit A; Sustain Objections to Paragraph 9; and the Objection to Paragraph 17 is moot. Page 3 of 3 As to the Merits: The au...

Excerpt: ...disregarded. Lifschutz cites Code of Civil Procedure section 437c(b)(3) which sets forth that opposition paper requirements. While section 437c(b)(3) does not reference other facts that the opposing party believes are undisputed and material to the court's ruling, CRC, rule 3.1350(f)(3) provides that the content of the separate statement in opposition may include additional material facts pertinent to the disposition of the motion, which Page 2 o...

Excerpt: ...(CCP. §§2030.210, 2030.220, 2030.230 and 2030.240 for interrogatories and C.C.P. §§2031.210, 2031.220, 2031.230, 2031.240 and 2031.280 for request for production of documents); and (2) the party's failure to serve timely responses was due to mistake, inadvertence or excusable neglect. The discovery at issue in the motions to compel further responses contains objections, responses or a hybrid response with objection. An objection to an interro...

Excerpt: ...continue the case management in this case, currently scheduled for 5‐9‐18, to 5‐10‐ 18, to coincide with the trial setting conference in the Garcia case. Any party wishing to oppose that order should appear on 3‐29‐18. Analysis: The demurrer is overruled because it does not dispose of the entire cause of action alleged. “No action shall be brought under this part for any violation of a posting, notice, agency reporting, or filing re...

Excerpt: ...nt to Code of Civil Procedure section 1019.5, forthwith. On 10/24/17, Plaintiff James Foxx filed his complaint against Defendants Daniel Foxx, Jeff Curci, Bennion Deville Homes, Roseanne Foxx, D&R Foxx, Inc. and Sterling Ridge Lot 1, LLC alleging 15 causes of action. On 1/12/18, Plaintiff dismissed the 2nd and 9th causes of action, leaving the following 13 causes of action: 1) breach of contract, 3) declaratory relief, 4) breach of fiduciary duty...

Excerpt: ...demarks on the part of defendant John Suhr. As to the 2nd and 3rd causes of action, the court rejects the argument that abuse of control and corporate waste cannot be asserted as separate breaches of fiduciary duty. As to the 5th cause of action, the FAC adequately states the basis for irreparable harm to support an injunction claim. Plaintiff alleges that defendant John Suhr has claimed ownership of the trademarks, has sought to license the trad...

Excerpt: ... irrelevant to the Court's analysis. The plaintiff alleges that the defendant violated Labor Code section 2802 by failing to reimburse travel expenses incurred for “pre‐employment drug testing and physical examination . . . .” Subdivision (a) of that section requires an employer to “indemnify his or her employee for all necessary expenditures or losses incurred by the employee in direct consequence of the discharge of his or her duties, o...

Excerpt: ...is pervasive and seventh cause of action – whether there is extreme and outrageous conduct); denied as to the second, eighth and ninth causes of action on the grounds that Defendant has failed to meet its initial burden. First Cause of Action for Sexual Harassment: Plaintiff has provided sufficient evidence to establish a triable issue of material fact regarding this cause of action. She has provided evidence that over a two‐month period of t...

Excerpt: ...of Civil Procedure section 1019.5, forthwith. The First Amended Complaint (“FAC”) for: (1) fraud, (2) negligent misrepresentation, (3) breach of contract, (4) slander of title, (5) quiet title, (6) tortious interference with prospective business advantage, (7) unfair competition, (8) declaratory relief, (9) injunctive relief, (10) financial elder abuse, (11) tortious breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing and (12) contr...

Excerpt: ... section 2966, 4) negligence, 5) accounting, and 6) unfair business practices. Thereafter, on 1/9/18 Plaintiffs filed a First Amended Complaint (“FAC”) alleging 8 causes of action, including the original 6 causes of action plus 7) intentional representation, and 8) negligent misrepresentation. Page 8 of 11 Defendant demurs asserting that the facts set forth in the original verified Complaint are distinctly different than those in the FAC and ...

Excerpt: ...r. Thereafter, the demurring party must file a declaration demonstrating compliance with those provisions by describing “the means by which” the parties met and conferred. (§ 430.41, subd. (a)(3)(A).) The declaration of Wasser – which is identical for all three demurrers – does not describe the means by which she met and conferred with opposing counsel, or otherwise demonstrate compliance with the “in person or by telephone” requirem...

Excerpt: ...pent on these particular motions and this case seems beyond reasonable when one returns to the subject matter of the litigation which, as far as the moving party, is a surrender of money with no claim. Also the number of attorneys working on the case seems high. However, to recognize the efforts of each attorney seems reasonable. Finally, the hourly rate seem reasonable. Therefore, the court reduces the fees to one‐half of the hours prayed for ...

Excerpt: ...al argument, this court granted moving party leave to respond to Robledo's late filed declaration. In addition, the court allowed leave to file supplemental briefing on whether or not the contents of the declaration raised a triable issue of fact as to any of the causes of action. In addition, the court was going to further consider arguments of counsel concerning the Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (“IIED”) claim. In response, D...

Excerpt: ... distributed by [Defendant].” The issue is “evidence, describe, refer, or relate” which is broad to encompass virtually any document—which Plaintiff never addressed in her separate statement or meet and confer In opposition, Defendant appears to have no issue with producing its Lemon Law policies, and Plaintiff failed to address why that is not sufficient. Nos. 23 (technical service bulletins) and 24 (recalls) for the type of car at issue...

Excerpt: ...equest to only claimants in California and that are within the Defendant's database is most reasonable. Sanctions are not awarded because the initial RFP was not so narrowly tailored as that which resulted from the meet and confer process. ...

Excerpt: ... re: Alter ego, Indemnification, Emotional distress, Attorneys' Fees, Punitive Damages, UCL damages, Injunctive relief. For the following reasons, the motion is denied as to Alter ego, Indemnification, Emotional distress, Punitive Damages, Injunctive relief and granted without leave to amend as to Attorneys' fees and UCL damages. Alter ego‐As discussed in reference to the demurrer, Plaintiffs have alleged alter ego. Indemnification‐The Settle...

Excerpt: ...his court granted UPS summary judgment as to the Cross‐Complaints filed by Mission Linen, Adam Hudson and JFK Memorial as those cross complaint only sought indemnity, apportionment, contribution and declaratory Page 2 of 11 relief, none of which had merit in light of the court's ruling that UPS was entitled to summary judgment as to all causes of action in Navarro's Complaint. UPS filed identical memorandum of costs for $13,724.87 against Plain...

Excerpt: ...aring for 3/26/18. Opposition was to be filed on or before 3/13/18, and reply Page 2 of 3 on or before 3/19/18). The court's order also provided that all members were to be provided notice at least 20 days before the hearing either via e‐mail or first‐class mail, pursuant to Civil Code section 4040, based on each member's preferred method of communication. Although the court order provide 20 days' notice the code provides 15 days' notice whic...

Excerpt: ...tired faculty member. There are no material facts are in dispute and the parties agree the petition raises a question of law. There is no administrative record. Request for Judicial Notice: The Request for Judicial Notice is granted pursuant to Evidence Code 452(b) and (c). “It is settled principle that administrative agencies have only such powers as have been conferred upon them, expressly or by implication, by constitution or statute.” (Fe...

Excerpt: ...nc., dba Paragon Schmid Building Products. Analysis: The arbitration provision in the contract between K. Hovnanian and BSG provides that the only disputes that must be arbitrated are disputes that arise “out of this Master Subcontract . . . , including disputes involving claims made by homebuyers, . . . which involve[] a matter with economic value in excess of the jurisdictional limit of a small claims court….” (See Exh. S to decl. of Josh...

Excerpt: ...sagree with one another. Their opinions are supported by Plaintiff's medical records. Hence, there are disputed material facts as to whether defendant Dr. Ha's actions fell below the applicable standard of care and whether that alleged failure to meet the applicable standard of care caused or contributed to Plaintiff's injuries. Plaintiff presented evidence (response to Form Interrogatory 2.6) that defendant Dr. Ha was an employee of defendant Ri...

Excerpt: ... declaration was actually filed with the motion. The only evidence in support of the motion is the declaration of Field filed with the reply. The Court will not consider that evidence, because the opposing parties have not had a chance to respond to or rebut it. Because this denial is not on the merits of the motion, it is without prejudice to the filing of a second motion that is supported by evidence. Alternatively, if the Field declaration was...

Excerpt: ... through illusory modification proposals in order to charge exorbitant processing and late fees. (FAC, ¶73.) This allegation arguably constitutes an unfair business practice. Although many of the other allegations are unclear or improper, Plaintiff has stated a cause of action based on this allegation. Although, Nationstar argues that Plaintiff does not have standing to bring a UCL cause of action because he was granted a loan modification and n...

Excerpt: ..., memorandum of points and authorities, and exhibits filed on 1‐5‐18;  The defendant's opposition to the motion, and attached exhibits and transcripts, filed 1‐29‐18;  The declaration on behalf of defendant regarding the timeliness of that opposition, filed 1‐30‐18;  The plaintiff's reply, filed 2‐5‐18;  The declaration on behalf of plaintiff, filed 2‐9‐18;  The declaration of Sherise Histen filed 3‐12‐18. �...

Excerpt: ...ary approval on May 21, 2018, at 8:30 A.M. in this department. If a second motion is filed at least three court days before that date, the Court is likely to vacate that status conference. Page 3 of 7 Analysis: New Evidence With Reply New evidence is generally not permitted with reply papers. (Jay v. Mahaffey (2013) 218 Cal.App.4th 1522, 1537‐1538.) Plaintiff submits his declaration and deposition transcripts, as well as the supplemental declar...

Excerpt: ...reponderance of the evidence that a defendant is liable for financial abuse of an elder, in addition to compensatory damages and all other remedies otherwise provided by law, the court shall award to plaintiff reasonable attorney's fees and costs. (Emphasis added.) This is a unilateral fee‐shifting provision under which fees may be awarded to a prevailing plaintiff but not a prevailing defendant in order to encourage the effective enforcement o...

Excerpt: ...ned on a Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings. (The Court did note correspondence between Plaintiff and defendant Priamos concerning attorney's fees and that defendant Priamos filed the Motion to Dismiss after the correspondence.) A party who qualifies for a fee award should recover for all hours reasonably spent, including those spent on fee related matters unless special circumstances would render an award unjust. (Serrano v. Unruh (1982) 32 Ca...

Excerpt: ...ndant Priamos' and defendant Thorson's requests to apportion the remaining costs are DENIED. Item 1e, 1f and 1h‐ Fees Related to Pro Hac Vice Applications: Plaintiff failed to demonstrate, discuss, or explain why the skill and expertise of an out of state attorney were reasonably necessary to the litigation. Item 16a,16c and 16g‐ Mileage to Appear for Hearings and Courtcall: Plaintiff claimed $177 in fees as mileage for its attorney to appear...

Excerpt: ... had moved out of his house after his mortgage lender threatened to foreclose, moved back into his house in September 2014 and expended funds to repair damages to his house that were made while the house was vacant based upon Ocwen's representation in April 2014 that Ocwen would consider his application for a loan modification. (TAC ¶¶ 56‐59.) The demurrer is based upon the grounds that the 2nd cause of action fails to state facts sufficient ...

Excerpt: ...Maher then took Wolcott's default on 09/28/2017. Default Judgment was entered on 1/15/2017. The motion is based upon the grounds that the default and default judgment were entered as result of Wolcott's excusable neglect. For the following reasons, the motion is denied: Wolcott has not shown that the default and default judgment were entered as result of his excusable neglect. Wolcott states that he did not file an answer because he thought that ...

Excerpt: ...ns on the ground of lack of jurisdiction of the court over him or her. When a defendant challenges the court's personal jurisdiction on the ground of improper service of process the burden is on the plaintiff to prove the existence of jurisdiction by proving the facts requisite to an effective service.” (Summers v. McClanahan (2006) 140 Cal. App. 4th 403, 413.) In this case, the Summons and Complaint were served on August 1, 2017. The Page ...

Excerpt: ...rogatories 2 ‐ 15, 18 ‐ 20, 22 ‐ 25, 27 ‐ 28, and 31 ‐ 42. Sanctions in the amount of $100.00 are imposed against Plaintiff and shall be payable to Defendant within 30 days. Plaintiff's objections to the Special Interrogatories are largely without merit. With respect to each Special Interrogatory to which Plaintiff actually provided an answer in whole or part, the answer was preceded by the phrase, “to the extent it can be answered,�...

Excerpt: ... that the Opposition is untimely. The Court also notes that Defendant failed to comply with the meet and confer requirements under CCP § 435.5 prior to filing the motion. The hearing on the motion to strike was continued to 8:30 a.m. on April 20, 2018 in Department 7. Defendant is ordered to meet and confer with Plaintiff by phone or in person for the purpose of determining whether an agreement can be reached that would resolve the objections ra...

Excerpt: ...ontract. Civil Code §1559 specifically allows a third party beneficiary to enforce the contract. 2COA (Elder Financial Abuse): The complaint only contains conclusory allegations. This COA requires factual allegations to support the assertions. Rice v. Clark (2002) 120 Cal.Rptr.2d 522, 527, as cited by the Plaintiff does not address pleading issues. 3COA (Fiduciary Duty): Plaintiffs fail to cite to any authority to support this assertion. 4COA (C...

Excerpt: ...itle to Plaintiff's real and personal property through an alleged fraudulent investment scam. Demurring Defendant, 5AIF Sycamore 1, LLC (“5AIF”) loaned money that was used to purchase one of subject pieces of real Page 3 of 4 property, the Shadow Mountain property, and is named on and demurs to the 10th cause of action for false promise, 14th cause of action for declaratory relief, 15th cause of action to quiet title and 16th cause of action ...

Excerpt: ...g, LLC agreed “to provide Premier Passover with temporary Event and Banquet staff…” for a 7‐day Passover celebration at the Westin Mission Hills Resort in Rancho Mirage in April, 2014. (SAC, Exh. A; SAC ¶ 24.) Spherion alleges that Spherion is a partnership, that Defendants Barry and Simon Werner are the owners of D KMR Tours, D Baruch Erblich is the owner of Defendant Afikoman Tours, that all are partners in Premier Passover a partnersh...

Excerpt: ... leave to amend. Plaintiffs plead ultimate facts to support their fourth and fifth cause of action for negligence and products liability. See CCP § 425.10; Doe v. City of Los Angeles (2007) 42 Cal.4th 53, 550; C.A. v. William S. Hart Union High School Dist. (2012) 53 Cal.4th 861, 872. However, the sixth cause of action for breach of warranties fails because there is no allegation that Corona sold the allegedly defective Tire to Decedent or Plain...

Excerpt: ...iled this motion timely. This argument fails. The mandatory relief provisions of section 473(b) are in pertinent part as follows: “[T]he court shall, whenever an application for relief is made no more than six months after entry of judgment, is in proper form, and is accompanied by an attorney's sworn affidavit attesting to his or her mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or neglect, vacate any (1) resulting default entered by the clerk against his ...

Excerpt: ...limit waives the right to compel a further response to the interrogatories. (CCP §§ 2030.300(c); see Vidal Sassoon, Inc. v. Sup.Ct. (Halpern) (1983) 147 Cal.App.3d 681, 685.) The 45‐day time limit is mandatory and “jurisdictional” (court has no authority to grant a late motion). (Sexton v. Sup.Ct. (Mullikin Med. Ctr.) (1997) 58 Cal.App.4th 1403, 1410.) The 45‐day deadline runs from the date the verified response is served, not from the ...

Excerpt: ... this litigation is something that would never have been in FCA's control – an aftermarket alteration. Finally, DCH and Wells Fargo correctly assert that a good faith settlement does not preclude their statutory indemnity cause of action under Civil Code §1792. ...

Excerpt: ...g fee. C.C.P. §425.16 provides a summary procedure by which a defendant can dispose of a lawsuit brought primarily to chill the valid exercise of the constitutional rights of free speech and right to petition, at the pleading stage to avoid the cost and delay of lengthy litigation. Soukup v. Law Offices of Herbert Hafif (2006) 39 Cal.4th 260, 278. Anti‐SLAPP motions to strike have two prongs. First, the moving party must show that the anti‐S...

Excerpt: ... resolved during the Court‐ordered meet and confer. A moving party must establish good cause justifying discovery. (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §2031.310(b)(1).) To establish good cause, the moving party must demonstrate relevance and facts justifying discovery. (Kirkland v. Superior Court (2002) 95 Cal.App.4th 92, 98.) The burden to show good cause for production “is met simply by a fact‐ specific showing of relevance.” (TBG Insurance Services...

Excerpt: ...r future based on the two‐year discretionary dismissal of a mechanics lien action, pursuant to Civil Code sections 8462 and 8554. Code of Civil Procedure section 1048(b) provides that the court may “in furtherance of convenience or to avoid prejudice, or when separate trials will be conducive to expedition and economy” order a separate trial of any issue. Plaintiff Orr Builders designed and completed the improvement to property, which is at...

Excerpt: ...t time, she was put on inquiry notice that the Settlement Agreement was unenforceable and should have conducted a reasonable investigation as to the cause of her injury. Furthermore, Plaintiff had no reasonable expectation that Defendant would continue to represent her after she discovered that her appeal was denied. Representation in an unrelated matter, an isolated invoice in February 2016 for costs and expenses, and communications regarding th...

Excerpt: ...n were denied as compared to the harm the defendant would be likely to suffer if the preliminary injunction were issued.” [Smith v. Adventist Health System/West (2010) 182 Cal.App.4th 729, 749.) This test functions on a sliding scale, such that a greater showing on one factor will mean less is required on the other. (Butt v. State of Calif. (1992) 4 Cal.4th 668, 678.) The evidence supports that there is a likelihood of Plaintiff prevailing on t...

Excerpt: ... 715.) Duran gave money and gifts to Chane and his brothers when they needed it, i.e., helped one of Chane's brothers through college. (AR 673.) Duran had been employed by the Employment Development Department as a Criminal Investigator. (AR 36.) He applied for emergency service retirement on 9/5/13, and retired on 11/1/13. (AR 36‐43.) He elected the “Option 1 Allowance” and designated Chase Billow (Chane's brother) as the beneficiary. (AR ...

Excerpt: ...thority, the court has no discretion to deny the enumerated allowable costs to the prevailing party. (Nelson v. Anderson (1999) 72 Cal. App. 111, 129.) Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 1033.5 restricts allowable costs to those that are reasonably necessary to the conduct of the litigation rather than merely convenient or beneficial to its preparation. (Cal Code Civ Proc § 1033.5(c)(2).) The statute does not indicate that only fees for successful motions ...

Excerpt: ...es. (Ebaugh v. Rabkin (1972) 22 Cal.App.3d 891, 894‐895; Moody v. McDonald (1854) 4 Cal. 297, 299.) Thus, the motion to strike punitive damages in the 1st and 5th cause of action is granted, without leave to amend. The current definitions of “malice” and “oppression” were changed by the 1987 amendments to Civil Code §3294, to incorporate “despicable conduct.” The amendments narrowed the definitions so that punitive damages will onl...

Excerpt: ... to eject Plaintiff from the property without first resolving whether Plaintiff is entitled to specific performance of the agreement between the parties, which would moot the unlawful detainer issues. Defendant contends that Plaintiff cannot prevail as her case is barred by the statute of limitations. However, Plaintiff has presented evidence that she continues to pay Defendant $780 a month. Further, Defendant admits there is no time for performa...

Excerpt: ...ge of the peril to be apprehended, (2) actual or constructive knowledge that injury is probable, as opposed to a possible, result of the danger, and (3) conscious failure to act to avoid the peril.” (Simmons v. Southern Pac. Transportation Co. (1976) 62 Cal.App.3d 341, 360.) Here, Plaintiff alleges that the Hendersons allowed their daughter to have a party while Allison was out of town and there was no adult supervision; knew and consented to S...