Excerpt: ...tiff experiences a contemporary sensory awareness of the causal connection between the defendant's infliction of harm and a close relative's injury. (Fortman v. Forvaltningsbolaget Insulan AB (2013) 212 Cal.App.4th 830, 836; see also Ko v. Maxim Healthcare Services, Inc. (2020) 58 Cal.App.5th 1144, 1159 (Ko).) As to these Defendants, Plaintiff Downey alleges that she was on the phone with her daughter, Plaintiff Vance, when the dangerous conditio...

Excerpt: ...dant's time to reply was extended by two court days based upon electronic service, but Plaintiff presents no authority under which Defendant could not rely on the mail service deadline. Moreover, Plaintiff's substantive opposition waived any defect or irregularity in the filing and service of the motion. (See Carlton v. Quint (2000) 77 Cal.App.4th 690, 697.) Defendant has the burden to establish Plaintiff's claimed deposition costs are unreasonab...

Excerpt: ...d the examination. The exam may be audio‐recorded, but not video‐ recorded. (Code Civ. Proc., § 2032.530, subd. (a); see also Baqleh v. Superior Court (2002) 100 Cal.App.4th 478, 492.) Plaintiff is correct that the court lacks jurisdiction to compel participation by the parents. However, if the parents refuse to facilitate the IME, the court has jurisdiction to impose discovery sanctions, including monetary, evidentiary, issue, and terminati...

Excerpt: ...nd sustains the remaining objections for lack of foundation. The court sustains all of Defendants' objections to the declaration of Elias Teshome for lack of foundation. Plaintiffs have shown a reasonable probability of prevailing on the merits. The declaration of Chris L. Boulter, the Custodian of Records for Val‐Chris Investments, Inc., includes an escrow closing statement from June 2011. The closing statement shows that Plaintiffs paid $289,...

Excerpt: ...showing that the challenged cause of action arises from protected activity. (Navellier v. Sletten (2002) 29 Cal.4th 82, 88; Code Civ. Proc., § 425.16, subd. (b)(1).) If Defendants meet this burden, the court determines whether Plaintiffs can demonstrate a reasonable probability of prevailing in the action. (Id., at pp. 88–89.) Plaintiffs' first cause of action alleges a violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against individual Defendants Fine and Amer...

Excerpt: ...tent. Plaintiff generically pleads that the “2014‐2019 Chevrolet Silverados have had problems just like those experienced by Plaintiff; namely shaking, vibration, shuddering, jerking, and rough shifting. This problem is so well known and pervasive that it has been given several catchy names, including the ‘Chevy shake,' and the less humorous term ‘death wobble.' GENERAL MOTORS LLC is well aware of the problems experienced by customers, an...

Excerpt: ...he Property and to take necessary steps to evict tenants. Although the order commands Defendant, “to show cause why a preliminary injunction should not be ordered restraining you and enjoining you,” the proposed orders do not appear to restrain or enjoin conduct. They appear to mandate it: 1. Maintain, repair and replace [the Property] in a clean manner … and in compliance with [CCRs]…. 2. Provide the Association access to the Property on...

Excerpt: ...n of emotional distress, the court previously sustained a demurrer without leave to amend. For the second and fifth causes of action, fraud and negligent misrepresentation, Plaintiff alleges: 1. Rizo, acting as an agent of FPR, gave a repair estimate for water damage. 2. Rizo misrepresented that he and FPR would rent Plaintiff some drying fans and allow Plaintiff to return the fans as soon as the walls were dried, and that FPR would clean and res...

Excerpt: ...ruth of the contents of those documents and websites. (See Fremont Indemnity Co. v. Fremont General Corp. (2007) 148 Cal.App.4th 97, 113; see also Ragland v. U.S. Bank National Assn. (2012) 209 Cal.App.4th 182, 193–194.) For the second cause of action, negligence per se, Sunrun correctly argues that there is not an independent cause of action. (Quiroz v. Seventh Ave. Center (2006) 140 Cal.App.4th 1256, 1285– 1286.) However, Plaintiffs allege ...

Excerpt: ...ame moot, Petitioner could be the prevailing party. (Midpeninsula Citizens for Fair Hous. v. Westwood Investors (1990) 221 Cal.App.3d 1377, 1392, fn. 3; see also Graham v. DaimlerChrysler Corp. (2004) 34 Cal.4th 553 (Graham).) Petitioner sued because the City required her to get a WVAP for her dog, and the City denied her request for a hearing on the WVAP's necessity. Petitioner's claims had merit: the City challenged her pleadings and lost. Peti...

Excerpt: ...he contents of those documents and websites. (See Fremont Indemnity Co. v. Fremont General Corp. (2007) 148 Cal.App.4th 97, 113; see also Ragland v. U.S. Bank National Assn. (2012) 209 Cal.App.4th 182, 193–194.) For the second cause of action, negligence per se, Sunrun correctly argues that there is not an independent cause of action. (Quiroz v. Seventh Ave. Center (2006) 140 Cal.App.4th 1256, 1285– 1286.) However, Plaintiffs allege a direct ...

Excerpt: ...he truth of the contents of those documents and websites. (See Fremont Indemnity Co. v. Fremont General Corp. (2007) 148 Cal.App.4th 97, 113; see also Ragland v. U.S. Bank National Assn. (2012) 209 Cal.App.4th 182, 193–194.) For the second cause of action, negligence per se, Sunrun correctly argues that there is not an independent cause of action. (Quiroz v. Seventh Ave. Center (2006) 140 Cal.App.4th 1256, 1285– 1286.) However, Plaintiffs all...

Excerpt: ...ings in Exhibits 4 through 15, the court takes judicial notice of the filings but not the facts alleged in those filings. (Evid. Code, § 452, subd. (d); see Fremont Indemnity Co. v. Fremont General Corp. (2007) 148 Cal.App.4th 97, 113.) For the balance of the request for judicial notice, the court denies the request and sustains Petitioner's objections. The court sustains Petitioner's objections to AOE exhibits 23, 29, and 36. Addressing the mer...

Excerpt: ...ss of the causal connection between the defendant's infliction of harm and a close relative's injury. (Fortman v. Forvaltningsbolaget Insulan AB (2013) 212 Cal.App.4th 830, 836; see also Ko v. Maxim Healthcare Services, Inc. (2020) 58 Cal.App.5th 1144, 1159 (Ko).) As to these Defendants, Plaintiff Downey alleges that she was on the phone with her daughter, Plaintiff Vance, when the dangerous condition of Defendants' property caused a collision. A...

Excerpt: ...employee to seek recovery of tort damages from the person who hired the contractor but did not cause the injuries. (Privette, supra, 5 Cal.App.4th at p. 702, emphasis added.) Defendant must establish, by admissible evidence, that there was an independent contractor. Defendant has failed to do so. Defendant contends that Defendant hired Desert Power as an independent contractor. Labor Code section 2750.5 requires Defendant to present admissible ev...

Excerpt: ...employee to seek recovery of tort damages from the person who hired the contractor but did not cause the injuries. (Privette, supra, 5 Cal.App.4th at p. 702, emphasis added.) Defendant must establish, by admissible evidence, that there was an independent contractor. Defendant has failed to do so. Defendant contends that Defendant hired Desert Power as an independent contractor. Labor Code section 2750.5 requires Defendant to present admissible ev...

Excerpt: .... (Donabedian v. Mercury Ins. Co. (2004) 116 Cal.App.4th 968, 994.) For the first cause of action under Civil Code section 1708, the fifth cause of action under Code of Civil Procedure section 366.2, the sixth cause of action under Code of Civil Procedure section 708.210, and the seventh cause of actions under Code of Civil Procedure section 22, those sections do not establish causes of action. For the second cause of action under the Fourth Amen...

Excerpt: ... as to the third cause of action, intentional infliction of emotional distress. The court grants Defendant's request for judicial notice as to Exhibit A, but not judicial notice of the truth of its contents. The court grants the request for judicial notice as to Exhibit B. For the first cause of action, Plaintiffs allege no facts showing that Defendant had a mandatory duty to preserve Plaintiffs' “quasi‐property” rights to decedent's remain...

Excerpt: ...der or dependent adult (if the plaintiff alleges oppression, fraud or malice) or with conscious disregard of the high probability of such injury (if the plaintiff alleges recklessness) [citations].” (Carter v. Prime Healthcare Paradise Valley LLC (2011) 198 Cal.App.4th 396, 406‐07.) Plaintiff must allege with particularity the reckless, oppressive, or malicious conduct. (Id. at 410.) To impose elder abuse damages and attorney fees on an emplo...

Excerpt: ...irst and second causes of action, age discrimination and age harassment, Plaintiff failed to exhaust administrative remedies. Plaintiff filed the original Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) complaint on February 23, 2018. That complaint makes no allegations of age discrimination. (Defendants' Request for Judicial Notice (RJN) Ex. B.) Plaintiff says nothing about age until he amends the DFEH complaint on February 8, 2019. (Defendants...

Excerpt: ...s liable for injury caused by his or her acts or omissions to the same extent as a private individual. Plaintiff argues these statutes in the opposition, but does not allege liability under these statutes in this cause of action. Even if Plaintiff were to amend the Second Amended Complaint (SAC), Plaintiff's allegation would be that the District was vicariously liable for the negligent hiring and supervision of the employees who failed to supervi...

Excerpt: ...s liable for injury caused by his or her acts or omissions to the same extent as a private individual. Plaintiff argues these statutes in the opposition, but does not allege liability under these statutes in this cause of action. Even if Plaintiff were to amend the Second Amended Complaint (SAC), Plaintiff's allegation would be that the District was vicariously liable for the negligent hiring and supervision of the employees who failed to supervi...

Excerpt: ...l districts are not business establishments under the Unruh Act”].) The court finds no reasonable possibility that Plaintiff can allege facts that would show that the individual defendants would be liable under the Act. For the fourth and seventh causes of action, because demurring defendants are amended Doe defendants, the Second Amended Complaint does not allege that they are teachers or coaches or what other position they held. The court fin...

Excerpt: ... The court has no tentative ruling on the reasonableness of the hours billed because the judge did not receive the supplemental declaration of Timothy Loose until late morning on February 8, even though the document was filed and served on February 4. The court sustains Defendants' objection to the submission of additional evidence with the reply (the declaration of Defendants' counsel Rod Pacheco in an unrelated matter). The previous tentative r...

Excerpt: ...uest for judicial notice. The court sustains Plaintiff's evidentiary objection to Exhibit B of Daniel Hakhamzadeh's Declaration. Because the exhibit is an uncertified transcript, it cannot be cited. (Code Civ. Proc., § 2025.540, subd. (b).) The court sustains Plaintiff's evidentiary objections as to personal knowledge, foundation, and hearsay as to paragraphs 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10 of Robert E. Presby's Declaration. Presby declares that he maintains...

Excerpt: ...Robinson Helicopter Co. Dana Corp. (2004) 34 Cal.4th 979.) However, Defendants have met their burden to produce evidence showing that Plaintiff cannot establish certain elements of fraud: Defendant's misrepresentation and Plaintiff's reliance. Consequently, Plaintiff cannot demonstrate that she is entitled to an award of punitive damages by clear and convincing evidence. Plaintiff fails to meet the shifted burden to produce evidence showing a tri...

Excerpt: ...ction 425.16, subdivision (c), subsection (1), the court must award Plaintiff attorney fees if the court finds that Defendants' anti‐SLAPP motion was frivolous. If any reasonable attorney would agree that a motion is meritless, the motion is frivolous. (Moore v. Shaw (2004) 116 Cal.App.4th 182, 199 (Moore).) One key consideration is whether the moving party failed to meet thee threshold burden of establishing that the challenged causes of actio...

Excerpt: ...efendant is not entitled to relief under Code of Civil Procedure section 473, subdivision (b). (Scottsdale Ins. Co. v. Superior Court (Spyglass Homeowners Ass'n) (1997) 59 Cal.App.4th 263, 275.) The Discovery Act provides relief for all Defendant's requests here. (See Code Civ. Proc., §§ 2025.290, 2031.300, 2033.280.) To merit relief under the Discovery Act, the moving party must serve code‐ compliant responses and show mistake, inadvertence,...

Excerpt: ...nswer within 30 days. The court grants Defendant's request for judicial notice. (See Gong v. City of Rosemead (2014) 226 Cal.App.4th 363, 368 fn.1.) Defendant demurs to the first, second, and third causes of action based on Plaintiffs' failure to comply with the Tort Claims Act. The 4AC references “Exhibit 1” (see, e.g., 4AC, ¶ 25), but Plaintiff attached a document marked as “Exhibit A.” For clarity, the court will use “Exhibit A/1.�...

Excerpt: ...% liable,” and “100% responsible.” (Decl. of David J. Mendoza, ¶ 3; Exhibit A [Requests for Admissions 1, 2, and 3].) “[R]equests for admission serve to narrow discovery, eliminate undisputed issues, and shift the cost of proving certain matters.” (City of Glendale v. Marcus Cable Associates, LLC (2015) 235 Cal.App.4th 344, 353–354 [emphasis added].) Because Defendant has admitted liability, that fact is conclusively established and ...

Excerpt: ...just, the court should award compensation for all of the hours reasonably spent, including those spent to recover attorney fees. (Ketchum v. Moses (2001) 24 Cal.4th 1122, 1133.) However, “[a] fee request that appears unreasonably inflated is a special circumstance permitting the trial court to reduce the award or deny one altogether.” (Serrano v. Unruh (1982) 32 Cal.3d 621, 635.) Here, the evidence tends to show that Plaintiff's fee request i...

Excerpt: ...ornia, Inc. (1993) 14 Cal.App.4th 612, 616.) As to the general demurrer, Plaintiff's allegations of elder abuse are sufficiently particular for pleading purposes. Plaintiff alleges: (1) she was admitted to HGMC and was assessed to be a high risk for skin breakdown; (2) HGMC staff consistently and repeatedly failed to follow the skin integrity care plan created for Plaintiff; (3) HGMC failed, on enumerated days, to inspect and monitor Plaintiff fo...

Excerpt: ... Cal.App.4th 690, 697.) The court denies the motion as to Form Interrogatories (FROGs) 12.3 and 15.1 because Plaintiff did not meet and confer before filing the motion. The court finds that Plaintiff's meet‐and‐confer efforts were otherwise adequate. The court grants the motion as to FROGs 12.1, 12.2, and 12.6. (See Puerto v. Sup. Ct. (Wild Oats Markets, Inc.) (2008) 158 Cal.App.4th 1242 [no significant privacy invasion for discovery of names...

Excerpt: ...rata re: supplemental points and authorities. The court sustains Plaintiff's objections to the declaration of Mark S. Algorri. Defendant moves to set aside the default based on extrinsic fraud. The court should grant such relief only under extraordinary circumstances. (Rappleyea v. Campbell (19974) 8 Cal.4th 976, 981–982.) The court finds no extraordinary circumstances here. Extrinsic fraud occurs when something or someone deprives a party of p...

Excerpt: ...ays before the hearing date. For Plaintiff Esparza, the court grants the motion, but the order becomes effective after the court resolves the issue of standing for Plaintiff Moralez. The court denies Plaintiff's request for judicial notice. The contents of amicus curiae letters are not judicially noticeable. (Evid. Code, § 452.) Moreover, on November 24, 2020, the Supreme Court denied review for Felisilda v. FCA US LLC (2020) 53 Cal.App.5th 486 ...

Excerpt: ... Mercury Ins. Co. (2004) 116 Cal.App.4th 968, 994.) In a demurrer proceeding, the defects must be apparent on the face of the pleading or via proper judicial notice. (Id.) Here, both sides rely on outside facts to attack or defend the truth of the allegations in the Second Amended Complaint (SAC). The court has disregarded both sides' external evidence. The court denies Defendant's request for judicial notice. The fact that the subject property i...

Excerpt: ...ed States Constitution ensure the right to jury trial. Defendant cites no authority that guarantees parties in a civil action the right to have jurors in the same room during trial. Defendant argues that jurors must occupy the same space as the court, the lawyers, the litigants, and the witnesses because "the constitutional right to jury trial is the right as it existed in common law." (Notice of Motion and Motion (Motion), at p. 4 [emphasis in o...

Excerpt: ...and second causes of action, Plaintiff lacks standing. Plaintiff fails to allege that he listed the first, second, and sixth causes of action in his bankruptcy petition. When a person files for bankruptcy, any causes of action that person previously possessed belong to the bankruptcy estate. (Cloud v. Northrop Grumman Corp. (1998) 67 Cal.App.4th 995, 1001 (Cloud).) "Causes of action are separate assets which must be formally listed…. Simply lis...

Excerpt: ...pp. 4th 399, 414.) The allegations must “include facts showing a unity of interest and a resultant injustice, prerequisites to an alter ego theory.” (Stansfield v. Starkey (1990) 220 Cal. App. 3d 59, 74.) The court grants the motion with 30 days leave to amend for the third, fourth, sixth, eighth and ninth causes of action. The court grants the motion without leave to amend for the first, second and seventh causes of action. Plaintiff has agr...

Excerpt: ... must remove the following language from paragraph 3 on page 4 of the proposed order: The Court further finds that the terms of the Settlement have no obvious deficiencies. The court finds that the risks of further prosecution are substantial and include the risks that (1) penalties would be reduced after evaluation of the totality of the circumstances, or (2) that no penalties would be awarded for some or all of the alleged violations. The movin...

Excerpt: ...and ninth causes of action. Court finds no reasonable possibility that Cross‐ Complainant can cure the defect. (Cabral v. Soares (2007) 157 Cal.App.4th 1234, 1240.) For the second cause of action, breach of contract, the Second Amended Cross Complaint (SACC) fails to state the terms of the oral contract between Cano and Cross‐Defendants. (Cheema v. L.S. Trucking, Inc. (2019) 39 Cal.App.5th 1142, 1149; see also Daniels v. Select Portfolio Serv...

Excerpt: ...ations. First, by making this request in its reply, Plaintiffs have not given the adverse parties sufficient notice of the request. Second, Plaintiffs have not given the court enough information to take judicial notice of the matter. The request for judicial notice does not give enough context to interpret the table in the request. A court may take judicial notice of official acts and public records, but not necessarily the truth of the matters r...

Excerpt: ...o the County from Plaintiffs' negligence claims, but it does not apply to the individual Defendants. For the individual Defendants, Plaintiffs cannot recover for Defendants' failure to summon immediate medical care under Government Code section 845.6 or failure to provide adequate facilities, equipment, and personnel under Government Code section 845.2, but those immunities do not apply to Plaintiffs' other allegations that support their negligen...

Excerpt: ... television (CCTV) information and the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) on the storage and use of firehoses. The court orders the parties to meet and confer to prepare a stipulated protective order, to be submitted to the court within 10 days. Defendant must provide the requested CCTV and SOP information within 20 days. Plaintiff seeks the home addresses and phone numbers of three store employees: one who took Plaintiff's statement, another w...

Excerpt: ...nistrative Record to determine whether the weight of the evidence supports the Hearing Officer's finding that Petitioner engaged in misconduct. (Wences v. City of Los Angeles (2009) 177 Cal.App.4th 305, 313.) However, the administrative decision has a strong presumption of correctness. (Fukuda v. City of Angels (1999) 20 Cal.4th 805, 811–812, 817.) The evidence supporting the Hearing Officer's finding of misconduct is overwhelming. The Hearing ...

Excerpt: ...id not create the dangerous condition or have knowledge of the dangerous condition. First, El Super did not create the dangerous condition, a piece of orange on the floor on which Plaintiff alleges she slipped. Second, based on evidence presented, El Super did not have actual notice of the condition. The declaration of Gaby Mendoza establishes that the surveillance video taken on the date of the incident shows that no El Super employee saw the or...

Excerpt: ...ions 14 (only as to what actions management took), 17 (only as to what HR thought), 20 (to the extent that the out‐of‐court statement is offered for the truth), 50 (to the extent that the out‐of‐court statement is offered for the truth), and 59 (as to first paragraph only). The court overrules remaining objections. The court grants summary adjudication of the ninth and eleventh causes of action. The court otherwise denies the motion. For ...

Excerpt: ...ike. Court grants MyDyer's requests for judicial notice of Stidham's declaration in support of LLR's Opposition to MyDyer's application for the appointment of a receiver and the transcript of the hearing on the demurrer to the First Amended Cross‐Complaint (FACC). However, the court can only take judicial notice of the truth of facts asserted in documents such as orders, findings of fact, and conclusions of law. (Ramsden v. Western Union (1977)...

Excerpt: ...e number on Defendant. Plaintiff asks the court to correct his error nunc pro tunc. Nunc pro tunc orders exist to correct the court's errors, not a party's error. (See Golba v. Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. (2015) 238 Cal.App.4th 1251, 1265‐1266.) The court denies Plaintiff's request. Notice of entry of judgment was served April 22, 2020. During that time, the court was closed because of the COVID ‐19 pandemic. The presiding judge of this court...

Excerpt: ...(Sierra) 151 Cal.App.3d 447, 449; Vinson v. Superior Court (1987) 43 Cal.3d 833.) Then the court must balance the right of privacy against the need for discovery. (Valley Bank of Nevada, supra, 15 Cal.3d at 657.) Plaintiffs' workers' compensation claim records are directly relevant to her lost earnings claim. In response to interrogatories, Plaintiff claimed she was unable to work from March 22, 2018, to April 19, 2019, as a result of her injurie...