Excerpt: ...Due Process Principals, And Is The Result Of Extrinsic Fraud And Mistake Defendants Geet and Mahendra Prasad's motion to vacate the August 15, 2017 judgment is granted based on CCP 473(d) and extrinsic mistake. The judgment is set aside and this case is restored to the civil active list. The record discloses that the Prasads had no notice that plaintiff Bosco Credit, LLC was attempting to enter judgment against them. In addition, the judgment...

Excerpt: ...rity to rule on this demurrer due to a possible bankruptcy stay. If plaintiff Tony Fu's bankruptcy case is still pending and if Mr. Fu fraudulently transferred assets, wouldn't those assets be part of his bankruptcy estate? Counsel should be prepared to address that question at the hearing. Counsel should also address whether the fraudulent transfer claims need to be prosecuted in CGC-16-553702 or whether Mr. Liu should dismiss his cross-...

Excerpt: ... CCP 128.7(c)(2) issues an order for Synergy's counsel to show cause in writing no later than November 27, 2018 why they have not violated CCP 128.7(b) by filing and continuing to prosecute Synergy's cross‐complaint. The conduct of Synergy's counsel that appears to violate CCP 128.7(b) is the filing and continued prosecution of a cross‐complaint that is barred by well‐established law. CSS has no obligation to indemnify Synergy a...

Excerpt: ... to provide security services at the 2016 HSBF; 2) Lloyd Brown acted negligently in hiring and retaining defendants Jose Beltran and William Douglass; and 3) Mr. Brown's asserted negligence in hiring and retaining Mr. Beltran and Mr. Douglass was a substantial factor in causing plaintiff Shane Stevens' injuries. Liberally construing the evidence in favor of Mr. Stevens and drawing all reasonable inferences in favor of Mr. Stevens, a reaso...

Excerpt: ...erference with contractual relations in the first amended complaint is granted without prejudice to plaintiff Regional Protection Agency, Inc. filing a motion to amend to seek punitive damages as to the interference claim if and when it obtains facts allowing it to do so. An implied covenant claim is a contract claim for which punitive damages are not available. RPA has not alleged sufficient ultimate facts supporting corporate liability for puni...

Excerpt: ...ar accident that caused physical injury on her first cause of action for motor vehicle negligence. The second cause of action appears to seek emotional distress damages based on Wiley's negligent use of a police code that caused numerous officers to respond to the scene. (Amended Complaint, par. 19.) Wiley's post‐accident conduct did not cause further physical injury and the law limits the recovery of emotional distress damages in the a...

Excerpt: ...intiff'S Deposition Subpoena To Ucsf Health Information Management And To Grant A Protective Order And Sanctions (For Tentative Ruling Purposes Only Part 2 Of 2) The subpoena is directed to a side issue of the side issue: speculation about whether defendant McGarry, who works as a research scientist at UCSF, might have accessed plaintiff's medical records to come to the conclusion that the claimed disability involved defendant's knee ...

Excerpt: ...dge Van Aken will hear this motion in department 506 at 10:30 a.m. Plaintiff Anton Andryeyev's Notice Of Motion And Motion To Compel Supplemental Responses To Requests For Admissions And Form Interrogatories, And For Sanctions is GRANTED. Andryeyev's Requests for Admissions (Set 1) and Form Interrogatories (Set 2) were proper. Defendants objected to the RFAs on the grounds that the RFAs were premature and not fully complete in themselves....

Excerpt: ...hnology Inc.'s Motion For Assignment Of Rights, Restraining Order And Turnover Order is DENIED. With regard to the motion for assignment of rights, C.C.P. section 708.510(d) provides that a right to payment may be assigned "only to the extent necessary to satisfy the money judgment." Judgment creditor has provided no evidence that its broad proposed assignment is only to the extent necessary to satisfy the money judgment. Moreover sec...

Excerpt: ... petition to compel arbitration of the claims alleged by plaintiff Kenly Gaffke is granted. Moving defendants have shown that the parties entered in a valid enforceable arbitration agreement covering Mr. Gaffke's claims. Although the agreement was not signed by the moving defendants, their conduct showed they considered themselves bound by the agreement. (Serafin v. Balco Properties Ltd., LLC (2015) 235 Cal.App.4th 165, 177.) The identity of ...

Excerpt: ...l seven affirmative defenses. RJR's pleading of its affirmative defenses comports with the longstanding practice for pleading affirmative defenses in Bay Area state courts based on the well-understood premise that at the outset of a case a defendant may know the reasonable range of possible affirmative defenses but may not yet have had the opportunity to determine whether there is factual support for them. If, after a reasonable opportunity f...

Excerpt: ... is denied. While California has a liberal policy favoring allowing amendments to pleadings, that policy is insufficient to warrant the granting of this motion due to the undue prejudice that would be suffered by plaintiff Merrilee Harris if the motion is granted. Permitting the filing of the second amended cross‐complaint would inevitably result in a lengthy continuance of the trial and would require Ms. Harris to participate in greatly increa...

Excerpt: ...laintiffs Second Amended Complaint The motion will be heard by Judge Fleming at 9:00 a.m. Defendant Balaji Srinivasan's demurrer to the first and fourth causes of action for specific performance and breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing in plaintiffs Leerink Revelation Healthcare Fund I, L.P and Leerink Revelation Healthcare Fund II, L.P.'s second amended complaint is sustained without leave to amend. Plaintiffs ha...

Excerpt: ...complaint seeking an order that cross‐defendant R.I. and 17th LLC has a duty to defend Lambert against the claims alleged by cross‐complainant Whole Foods Market California, Inc. is denied in its entirety. Whether there is a contractual duty to defend and what circumstances a duty to defend is triggered is determined based on the language of the parties' agreement. The rules of interpretation in Civil Code 2778 are "default rules"...

Excerpt: ... Damage Claim. Pro Tem Judge Roger Mead, a member of the California State Bar who meets all the requirements set forth in CRC 2.812 to serve as a temporary judge, has been assigned to hear this motion. Prior to the hearing all parties to the motion will be asked to sign a stipulation agreeing that the motion may be heard by the Pro Tem Judge. If all parties to the motion sign the stipulation, the hearing will proceed before the Judge Pro Tem who ...

Excerpt: ...the deposition of Lisa Fulton is granted and its request for monetary sanctions is denied. Ms. Fulton's deposition must occur on or before October 26, 2018. The primary ground asserted to oppose this motion is that all information known by Ms. Fulton relating to this case is covered by the work product privilege of plaintiff State Farm General Insurance Company. However, State Farm has not submitted any evidence showing that Ms. Fulton was re...

Excerpt: ...418.10(a)(1). Plaintiff's declaration evidences that California was the site of "[a]ll of the design and engineering work" for the Atari project that is at the litigation's core. Further, plaintiff declares he "spent considerable time living in California and directing the project." This suffices to confer California jurisdiction. In contrast, defendant's motion papers proffer no evidence, just attorney argument. CCP �...

Excerpt: ...and the demurrer OVERRULED. CCP §418.10(a)(1). Plaintiff's declaration evidences that California was the site of "[a]ll of the design and engineering work" for the Atari project that is at the litigation's core. Further, plaintiff declares he "spent considerable time living in California and directing the project." This suffices to confer California jurisdiction. In contrast, defendant's motion papers proffer no evide...

Excerpt: ...39; counsel surveilled plaintiff, who is said to have lost his sight in a motor vehicle accident. Plaintiff seeks to compel a deposition of the investigator as well as surveillance photos, videos and/or reports and interrogatory answers regarding the surveillance. The attorney-client privilege and attorney work product doctrine are at issue. Plaintiff says the investigator is "an employee of defense counsel" - an assertion not helpful to ...

Excerpt: ...oncealment). No plaintiff‐defendant relationship is required. Rather, (1) intentionally failing to disclose facts known to defendant that plaintiff could not have discovered and/or (2) disclosing some facts to plaintiff but intentionally failing to disclose other facts making the disclosures deceptive are both long‐established other bases for this kind of fraud. (See CACI 1901 and cases cited in its use notes.) The Fourth District opinion Big...

Excerpt: ...D. Defendant satisfies the first prong of §425.16; her filing of a complaint with the San Francisco Department of Police Accountability (SFDPA) is protected by the statute. (See, e.g., Walker v. Kiousis (2001) 93 Cal.App.4th 1432, 1439; Lee v. Fick (2005) 135 Cal.App.4th 89, 97.) Plaintiff argues that the first prong is not met because defendant's activity was a crime ‐ filing "an allegation of misconduct against a police officer knowi...

Excerpt: ...Klein And Production Of Documents; Request For Sanctions Against Defendant Klein And His Counsel In The Amount Of $6,260.00 Pro Tem Judge Melinda Derish, a member of the California State Bar who meets all the requirements set forth in CRC 2.812 to serve as a temporary judge, has been assigned to hear this motion. Prior to the hearing all parties to the motion will be asked to sign a stipulation agreeing that the motion may be heard by the Pro Tem...

Excerpt: ...s its discretion per Penal Code 502(e)(1) not to award any fees to FusionStorm. FusionStorm never provided any persuasive evidence that Ms. Tenorio misused any of FusionStorm's information in a way that caused any harm. Moreover, the injunctive relief it sought and obtained was more prophylactic than remedial. Any party who contests a tentative ruling must send an email to [email protected] with a copy to all other parties by 4pm stat...

Excerpt: ...denied. In light of the court's ruling on the demurrer, the request for punitive damages is based on sufficient factual allegations supporting a cause of action in fraud. Any party who contests a tentative ruling must send an email to [email protected] with a copy to all other parties by 4pm stating, without argument, the portion(s) of the tentative ruling that the party contests. The subject line of the email shall include the line n...

Excerpt: ...4;[W]here a government agent's actions have induced noncompliance with procedural requirements, the government could be estopped from asserting those procedural bars against a citizen's recovery." (J.H. McKnight Ranch, Inc. v. Franchise Tax Bd. (2003) 110 Cal.App.4th 978, 979.) Respondent Assessment Appeals Board affirmatively advised KHP by the language in its "Information and Instructions for Assessment Appeal Application" t...

Excerpt: ...Of Patientpop, Inc. For Business Records And Request For Monetary Sanctions Plaintiffs' motion for an order compelling compliance with their deposition subpoena to non‐ party PatientPop, Inc. is granted in part. No later than October 31, 2018 PatientPop is required to produce all documents in its possession, custody and control regarding the reputation and competence of defendant Rachel Shu including all reviews of Dr. Shu by persons for wh...

Excerpt: ...tive economic relations and breach of the implied covenant of good fair and fair dealing in the first amended complaint filed by plaintiffs Vatche Cabayan and V. Cabayan Med. Corp. is denied as to both causes of action. Plaintiffs' allegations concerning State Fund's disparaging statements are so factually deficient that they preclude a determination whether they arise from State Fund's exercise of activity protected by the anti‐SLA...

Excerpt: ...s motion to transfer case is denied. Venue is proper per CCP 395(a) because this action was filed in the county where one of the defendants resides. The complaint does not show that defendant Robert Morrison, a San Francisco resident, was improperly joined or joined in bad faith. Joinder statutes are liberally construed and where a plaintiff is uncertain as to the extent each tortfeasor is responsible for his injuries, joinder of the all alleged ...

Excerpt: ...tion Agency, Inc.'s first, eighth and ninth causes of action for breach of contract, quantum meruit and promissory estoppel are stricken. All other monetary and non‐monetary sanctions sought by Uber are denied. RPA's request for monetary sanctions is also denied. This motion should never have been brought and is arguably an abuse of the 128.7 procedure notwithstanding that Uber is correct that RPA should have dismissed its claims seekin...

Excerpt: ...hat a dangerous condition of public property caused plaintiff's injury as a matter of law. Plaintiff must demonstrate the following to maintain his cause of action for dangerous condition of public property: (1) that CCSF owned or maintained the property; (2) that the property was in a dangerous condition on the date of accident; (3) causation; (4) the dangerous condition created a reasonably foreseeable risk of the kind of injury incurred; a...

Excerpt: ...cial notice of the 2009 separation agreement is denied because the parties dispute the validity and binding nature of that document. Mr. Ratias contends that the 2010 release superseded all prior contracts and Radius implicitly asserts that the 2009 separation agreement is binding. "[W]e hold the existence of a contract between private parties cannot be established by judicial notice under Evidence Code section 452, subdivision (h). Judicial ...

Excerpt: ...st per S.F. Campaign and Government Conduct Code 1.142(b) to obtain the campaign financing funds. Ms. Bassan's attempted filing was timely as the deadline had not yet expired. The record further discloses that by the deadline, respondents City and County of San Francisco and San Francisco Ethics Commission (collectively CCSF) had received Ms. Bassan's campaign contribution supporting materials. (Petition, Ex. 1, pgs. 21‐22.). Those mate...

Excerpt: ... leave to amend. Streets & Highways Code 30922 allows plaintiffs to bring an action to contest the validity of the toll increase authorized by Regional Measure 3. However, section 30922 does not expressly refer to the validation statues and thus the procedural requirements of the validation statutes do not apply. Government Code 50077.5 is inapplicable to the second cause of action since Regional Measure 3 was not approved per Article 3.5 which i...

Excerpt: ...equirements set forth in CRC 2.812 to serve as a temporary judge, has been assigned to hear this motion. Prior to the hearing all parties to the motion will be asked to sign a stipulation agreeing that the motion may be heard by the Pro Tem Judge. If all parties to the motion sign the stipulation, the hearing will proceed before the Judge Pro Tem who will decide the motion with the same authority as a Superior Court Judge. If a party appears by t...

Excerpt: ...icing, LLC, Anh Pham and Skygroup Realty, Inc.'s motion to set aside the default entered against them on August 10, 2018 is granted. The August 10, 2018 default is set aside as to all moving defendants per the discretionary relief provisions of CCP section 473(b). Because moving defendants' demurrer to the complaint was not taken off calendar until July 13, 2018, it was reasonable for defendants to believe that they did not need to respon...

Excerpt: ...statements are conclusory. The allegation that the defamatory statements refer to Mr. Bonnici's "conduct as a buyer and seller of jewelry and other items of value, with the intent of leading other sellers to believe false that" Mr. Bonnici and his associates "conduct their business in deceptive, illegal false and fraudulent manner" provides very little information about the content of the alleged defamatory statements and none...

Excerpt: ...on Of Documents, Set No. Two Pro Tem Judge James Fleming, a member of the California State Bar who meets all the requirements set forth in CRC 2.812 to serve as a temporary judge, has been assigned to hear this motion. Prior to the hearing all parties to the motion will be asked to sign a stipulation agreeing that the motion may be heard by the Pro Tem Judge. If all parties to the motion sign the stipulation, the hearing will proceed before the J...

Excerpt: ...ternate motion for summary adjudication is denied as to the first and second causes of action for premises liability and negligence and granted as to the third cause of action for products liability. Plaintiff Sussan Pourjavid-Granfors' objections to the declaration of Jorge Contreras are sustained. Mr. Contreras' statement that TKE did not control the premises is based on information and belief, which is insufficient to show either perso...

Excerpt: ...tion burden of showing that there was a claim against it for which a duty to defend applied. After the hearing on August 28, 2018 which continued the hearing on Alten's motion to allow the parties to submit further briefing, the court contacted the parties and requested that their briefing also address the issue of whether the San Francisco Unified School District made a claim asserted against Alten for which a duty to defend applied. Alten&#...

Excerpt: ...been assigned to hear this motion. Prior to the hearing all parties to the motion will be asked to sign a stipulation agreeing that the motion may be heard by the Pro Tem Judge. If all parties to the motion sign the stipulation, the hearing will proceed before the Judge Pro Tem who will decide the motion with the same authority as a Superior Court Judge. If a party appears by telephone, the stipulation may be signed via fax or consent to sign giv...

Excerpt: ...o file a first amended answer to the third amended complaint is granted. Granting the motion comports with California's policy of liberally allowing amendments to pleadings at any time in a case, which is especially applicable to answers. Defendants have shown that the amended answer is consistent with their understanding of the parties' contractual relationship. Plaintiff Anthony Lee has not shown that the changes that defendants wish to...

Excerpt: ...lleged fraud with more particularity. Paragraphs 8-9 and 31 indicate that the defects manifested within a year of the purchase. Mr. Vasquez was arguably on inquiry notice at that time and the claim appears time barred per CCP section 338. "In order to rely on the discovery rule for delayed accrual of a cause of action, '[a] plaintiff whose complaint shows on its face that his claim would be barred without the benefit of the discovery rule...

Excerpt: ...ses of action. The first and second causes of action adequately allege intentional and negligent misrepresentation claims based on Swinteron's alleged dissemination of the Project Manual knowing that Energia would rely on it and the Manual containing intentional and negligent misrepresentations about the testing of the window products. While the first cause of action adequately alleges an intentional misrepresentation claim, it also adequatel...

Excerpt: ... to an answer is not sanctionable conduct as there is a basis for such a filing per FPI Development, Inc. v. Nakashima (1991) 231 Cal.App.3d 346, the filing of this demurrer is a complete waste of time and ruling upon it does nothing to further the litigation in this case. The affirmative defenses are alleged in a way that conforms to long‐established and accepted practice in the Bay Area state courts. The purpose of this practice is to preserv...

Excerpt: ...e stipulation does not set a new briefing schedule and therefore the Court amends the briefing schedule as follows: supplemental opposition, if any, due by February 21, 2018. Supplemental reply, if any, due by February 27, 2018. The parties have not filed the stipulation and proposed order and they shall do so prior to January 31, 2018 at 9:30a.m. If a hearing is requested, it will be at 9:30a.m. A court reporter will not be provided by the court...

Excerpt: ...ent Group, LLC, et al.'s motion for sanctions under CCP 128.7 against Loanvest IX, LP, Loanvest XII and Mark Rushin is granted in large part. The first amended complaint is dismissed with prejudice and the Loanvest entities and Mt. Rushin are required to pay $1,270 to Mt. Diablo for the reasonable fees and costs (4 hours of attorney work at $295 per hour plus $90 in costs) it incurred in filing this motion. The first amended complaint and all...

Excerpt: ...intiff Fireman's Fund Insurance Companies' causes of action for express contractual indemnity (the first three causes of action alleged in the two complaints) is granted in its entirety. Fireman's Fund's right to subrogation based on the defendants' alleged failure to comply with their express indemnity obligations in the ADMA and APA was eliminated by QFA's filing for bankruptcy and the release by the plaintiffs in the 95...

Excerpt: ...hmayer as counsel for Yunji Willa Qian and Qian & Co., Inc is denied. "The substantial relationship test is not implicated [and disqualification is not warranted ] unless the attorney was in a position where he could have received information that his former client might reasonably have assumed the attorney would withhold from his present client." (Christensen v. U.S. Dist. Court for Cent. Dist. of California (9th Cir. 1988) 844 F.2d 694,...

Excerpt: ...ertain and/or fails to allege sufficient ultimate facts as to each of the five claims. As to the claims for breach of contract and common counts, it is not clear whether Mr. Krow alleges that he entered into one or more contracts with Mr. Gevertz, as opposed to entering into a contract with an entity such as Fox Ortega Enterprises for which Mr. Gevertz may have worked as an agent and/or an employee. If Mr. Krow alleges that he entered into one or...

Excerpt: ...cond amended cross‐complaint filed by cross‐ complainant MBW‐Brotherhood Way, LLC is overruled as to both causes of action. Liberally construed, the second amended cross‐complaint alleges that the phrase "for any reason" in paragraphs 3 and 4 of the MSA should be construed as excluding circumstances that allegedly occurred here where RCS, at the urging of Mr. Comstock, precluded Mr. Hawke from ceasing to work at the Project. State...

Excerpt: ...ersonal friend and has recommended her as an attorney to several people including to members of his family. However, Judge Kahn believes that he is fair and impartial in this case. Defendants SH Property, Inc. and The Bohan Company, Inc.'s motion for terminating sanctions is denied and their alternate motion for a trial continuance and monetary sanctions is granted. Plaintiff Danielle Paquette's unilateral cancellation of the defense ment...

Excerpt: ...lly improper. There is no California procedure that permits entry of a stipulated judgment that is not made in conformity with the confession of judgment rules and/or is not amenable to summary enforcement per CCP 664.6. The stipulation for judgment entered into by the parties neither complies with the strict requirements for a valid confession of judgment nor was it entered into in a pending case to fall within the scope of section 664.6. Plaint...

Excerpt: ... the fourth cause of action for violation of Civil Code 3344 and overruled as to the fifth cause of action for common law appropriation of name. Mr. McKee does not, nor does it appear that he can, allege that Eastwood used his name and/or contractor's license on or in any product, merchandise or good or for the purpose of advertising, selling or soliciting the purchase of a product, merchandise, good or service, which is required for section ...

Excerpt: ...tions and off calendar as to the prayer for treble damages. Ms. Diamond adequately alleges punitive damages liability against Uber. While gender discrimination in employment may not always or necessarily constitute malice or oppression, depending on the facts found gender discrimination in employment can be sufficient to meet the definitions of malice and/oppression in Civil Code 3294. Liberally construed, the complaint alleges conduct that meets...

Excerpt: ... unconscionability or duress under CACI 332 or 333 to warrant denial of arbitration. Even if defendant violated Business and Professions Code sec. 7159.5(a)(3), that illegal conduct is collateral to the main purpose of the contract and courts will generally sever an offensive clause and enforce the contract. (See Little v. Auto Stiegler, Inc. (2003) 29 Cal.4th 1064, 1074‐1075.) Moreover, the claim of illegality is attenuated because the illegal...

Excerpt: ...he request for punitive damages in the complaint filed by Janine and Michael Zavosky is denied in its entirety. There are triable disputes whether Farmers: a) conducted a reasonable and thorough investigation and complied with its good faith obligations as stated in CACI 2330 and b) acted with malice or oppression as those terms are defined in Civil Code 3294. Farmers' objections to the Painter and Frangiamore declarations are overruled. Any ...

Excerpt: .... The fees sought by Ng Solutions far exceed the reasonable amount of fees for a simple collection action against a pro per defendant who, apart from filing an answer, did not make any real effort to defend this case. The outer limit for the high end of a reasonable range of hours for experienced collection counsel to expend on this case is 40. 40 multiplied by the reasonable hourly rate of $200 yields an award of $8000. Any party who contests a ...

Excerpt: ...d as to all six causes of action. Mr. Norman allegations that Mr. Strateman unilaterally ceased operations of the company and took its assets for his personal benefit suffice to make Mr. Strateman an interested director per Delaware law. (Rales v. Blasband (Del. 1993) 634 A.2d 927, 936 ("A director is considered interested where he or she will receive a personal financial benefit from a transaction that is not equally shared by the stockholde...

Excerpt: ...tah Investments, LLC, Ninth Street Lodging, LLC and Lintedge, LLC's demurrer to all four causes of action alleged in the first amended complaint filed by Jonathan Asselin‐Normand is sustained without leave to amend as to all four causes of action. Mr. Asselin‐ Normand fails to allege a viable claim for violation of the Unruh Act. The amended complaint shows that Mr. Asselin‐Norman was perusing hotel options while in Canada. The Unruh Ac...

Excerpt: ...ay Hospitals' motion for summary judgment and alternative motion for summary adjudication are denied in their entirety. The declaration of Dr. Lorne Label shows that there is a triable dispute whether the acts or omissions of CPMC's nurses, staff and employees were a substantial factor in causing any of plaintiff Kyee Yeo's claimed injuries. Dr. Label's opinion that nothing in Mr. Yeo's medical condition made a tPA administrat...

Excerpt: ...er compelling plaintiffs' depositions and responses to discovery and for monetary sanctions is denied. Plaintiffs Masha Levinson and Leon Taylor's request for sanctions is also denied. The primary asserted basis for the relief sought in the motion ‐ that plaintiffs lied to the court and defense counsel about the scope of the destruction of their property as a result of the Sonoma County wildfires ‐ lacks merit as previously adjudicate...

Excerpt: ... Street Homeowners' Association, Matthias Spanle, Mark Sher, and Pamela Yoon's motion to enforce settlement agreement is granted. The court has jurisdiction to enforce the settlement per CCP 664.6. Defendants shall pay the settlement funds by February 28, 2018. The parties were obligated merely to "explore" in good faith the concept of retaining an independent board. In other words, the parties agreed to study or investigate the p...

Excerpt: ...tion is granted as to "Designated Defense Counsel" costs totaling $6,224.90, which are taxed because defendant failed to demonstrate how they are allowable pursuant to C.C.P. ? 1033.5(a)(10) or (a)(16). The motion is granted as to "Medical Records" costs totaling $841.49, which are taxed because defendant failed to demonstrate how they are allowable pursuant to C.C.P. ? 1033.5(a)(10) or (a)(16). The motion is granted in part and d...

Excerpt: ... costs are taxed: 1) $150 of the filing and motion fees because of an addition error by defendant Scott Smith; 2) All $795.43 of the service of process costs because no explanation is provided why the costs were incurred and it is not apparent why such costs were incurred and/or the costs are not allowed per the costs statute; and 3) All $120 of the court reporter fees because no explanation is provided why the costs were incurred and it is not a...

Excerpt: ...motion to strike the sole cause of action for conversion in the complaint filed by plaintiff John Hanlin is denied. Defendants failed to satisfy their first prong burden of showing that Mr. Hanlin's claim arises from activity protected by the anti‐SLAPP statute. Mr. Hanlin alleges that defendants converted his BMW by wrongfully taking possession of, denying him access to, assuming ownership of, and selling the BMW. Nowhere in the complaint ...

Excerpt: ...nd to seek punitive damages is granted on the following conditions: 1) Mr. Pankonin must provide code‐compliant verified responses without any objections other than privilege no later than February 6, 2018 to the following deem‐served discovery: a) state all facts that support each of the new allegations and all previously existing allegations against the new defendants; b) identify and provide full contact information for each person who kno...

Excerpt: ...ructive notice of that dangerous condition. It cannot be determined as a matter of law that the one inch discrepancy in the sidewalk was not a dangerous condition of public property. "In general, '[w]hether a given set of facts and circumstances creates a dangerous condition is usually a question of fact and may only be resolved as a question of law if reasonable minds can come to but one conclusion.'" (Peterson v. San Francisco C...

Excerpt: ...cy of this lawsuit is granted. Dr. Artus has shown that she will likely prevail on the merits of her claims that the November 2016 changes to the election rules were not made in compliance with the notice requirements of Civil Code 4360(a) and violate the ballot counting and recovery of fees and costs provisions in Civil Code 5105(a)(5) and (6) and 5145(b). The statement "Simplify the election process" does not substantially comply with t...

Excerpt: ...ive motion for summary adjudication is granted as to the eighth cause of action for failure to pay wages upon termination and denied as to other ten causes of action alleged in the first amended complaint filed by plaintiff Gregory Jeloudov. The undisputed facts show that Wells Fargo paid all wages and penalties it owed to Ms. Jeloudov as required by Labor Code 201‐203 and thus Wells Fargo is entitled to summary adjudication in its favor on the...

Excerpt: ...or summary judgement is GRANTED. Defendants satisfied their summary judgment burden by presenting evidence that plaintiff Richard Thomas is unable to prove either of his claims for intentional tort (trespass to real property) or negligence and plaintiff Richard Thomas has not presented any evidence creating a triable issue as to either of his claims. Strictly construing defendants' evidence and liberally construing Mr. Thomas' evidence fa...

Excerpt: ... leave to amend as to all six causes of action. Per Public Utilities Code 1759(a), this court lacks jurisdiction to entertain this action. The parties are familiar with the three‐part test used to determine whether a superior court lacks jurisdiction to hear an action against a utility regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission. The first element of that test is satisfied because the California Constitution gives the CPUC broad aut...

Excerpt: ...is SUSTAINED without leave to amend to the first through third causes of action for violation of FEHA and the seventh cause of action for breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing and SUSTAINED with twenty days leave to amend as to the fourth cause of action harassment and retaliation in violation of public policy, the fifth cause of action for violation of Labor Code 1102.5 and the sixth cause of action for intentional infliction of ...

Excerpt: ...equest For Production Of Documents, Set One, Against Defendants Unum Group And Provident Life & Accident Insurance Company Pro Tem Judge Aaron Minnis, a member of the California State Bar who meets all the requirements set forth in CRC 2.812 to serve as a temporary judge, has been assigned to hear this motion. Prior to the hearing all parties to the motion will be asked to sign a stipulation agreeing that the motion may be heard by the Pro Tem Ju...

Excerpt: ...does not clearly state that he and/or Argoz, Inc. intended to perform when the promises were made. Defendants' undisputed facts 1-68 do not directly address Argoz's/Soha's intent when the contract was executed. Second, a court can deny summary adjudication where a party's state of mind is at issue. (See CCP 437c(e).) Third, while the increase of plaintiff's salary to $170,000 per year indicates a willingness to perform, Mr. So...

Excerpt: ...he alleged conduct; it is not limited to "creation of a fake account." Second (Penal Code 502): OVERRULED; the statutory language is broad enough to encompass the alleged conduct. The statute defines "data" expansively and Plaintiff may be able to prove he had an ownership interest in, e.g., his login credentials. Third (Invasion of Privacy): OVERRULED; Plaintiff has adequately pled illicit use by Defendants of his logon credentia...

Excerpt: ...ded complaint adequately alleges that TinyCo, Inc. assigned its obligations under the Revenue Share Agreement to Jam City. Loytr's failure to file the first amended complaint in the time frame required by the July 20, 2017 order is not a basis to preclude it from filing the first amended complaint at least where, as here, Jam City did not seek entry of judgment prior to Loytr's filing of the first amended complaint and Jam City has not sh...

Excerpt: ...othy Lis' motion to set aside default and default judgment is granted in part. The default entered against Timothy Lis on June 25, 2018 is vacated on the condition that must be accepted by Timothy Lis that he will not assert any argument that any claims of plaintiff Lynne Crawford against him are barred by the five year statute. No default judgment has been entered against Timothy Lis, so that portion of the motion is off calendar. Timothy Li...

Excerpt: ... to compel arbitration is granted. This case is stayed pending the conclusion of arbitration proceedings. The FAA applies to this case because it involves interstate commerce as acknowledged in the complaint. Instquest is a Delaware corporation and its on‐line services implicate interstate commerce. Paragraph 13 of the parties' agreement expressly states that the FAA will govern with the limited exception that the procedural rules of the CA...

Excerpt: ... Berkley Assurance Company DENIED. There is a ripe controversy between Ms. Levinson and Mr. Taylor, on the one hand, and Berkley on the other, whether there is any possibility that Berkley's policy covers the malpractice claims asserted by Ms. Levinson and Mr. Taylor against Mr. Wiseblood in the underlying action. Based on the order rescinding the policy, Berkley is entitled to a declaration in its favor and against Ms. Levinson and Mr. Taylo...

Excerpt: ... 2.812 to serve as a temporary judge, has been assigned to hear this motion. Prior to the hearing all parties to the motion will be asked to sign a stipulation agreeing that the motion may be heard by the Pro Tem Judge. If all parties to the motion sign the stipulation, the hearing will proceed before the Judge Pro Tem who will decide the motion with the same authority as a Superior Court Judge. If a party appears by telephone, the stipulation ma...

Excerpt: ...nth, eighth, seventeenth, and twenty‐first affirmative defenses, b) OVERRULED as to the fifth, sixteenth, eighteenth, nineteenth, twenty‐second through twenty‐fourth and twenty‐eighth affirmative defenses, and c) SUSTAINED without leave to amend as to the sixth, ninth through fifteenth, twentieth, twenty‐fifth through twenty‐seventh and twenty‐ninth affirmative defenses. Defendants' request for leave to amend certain of their af...

Excerpt: ...Azarinfar are the prevailing parties in this case for purposes of recovering costs. All costs claimed by the defendants in their memorandum of costs filed October 31, 2017 are allowable as a matter of right or in the exercise of the court's discretion. All claimed costs were reasonably incurred. None of Dr. Nanda's arguments why some or all of the claimed costs should be stricken or taxed have any merit. Any party who contests a tentative...

Excerpt: ...that the video produced by Mr. Luini is not entitled to the protections in the protective order or that his ability to prosecute this case is impaired by that protective order. While some of the evidence submitted with the moving papers is suggestive that counsel for defendants may be interested in avoiding embarrassment of their clients by public dissemination of the video, reviewed as a whole, the evidence submitted on this motion shows that de...

Excerpt: ...re and Dr. Slosar must occur at a mutually agreeable date no later than January 15, 2018 or the experts will not be allowed to testify at trial. Plaintiff's counsel must pay sanctions of $3050 to defendants no later than January 15, 2018. Although plaintiff Lee Nager did not have permission to file any papers on this motion after the hearing before Judge Pro Tem Peter Catalanotti, the court reviewed those papers and does not believe that any ...

Excerpt: ...nt Litigation In Favor Of Arbitration. Memorandum Of Points And Authorities And Declaration Of Defendant Defendant Chung Chan, Jr.'s motion to compel arbitration is granted. This case is stayed pending completion of arbitration proceedings. If Mr. Chan does not cooperate in obtaining resolution of the claims filed by plaintiff Tour‐Sarkissian Law Offices, LLC by arbitration, TSLO is given leave to file a motion for determination that Mr. Ch...

Excerpt: ... fraud in the third amended complaint filed by plaintiff David Lampach GRANTED. By presenting Mr. Lampach's responses to the deemed‐served discovery, Mr. Keller and Delft satisfied their summary adjudication burden that Mr. Lampach has no information that either of the defendants made any communication in connection with the offer for the sale or purchase of securities in the consulting agreement that either included an untrue statement of ...

Excerpt: ...nd Production Of Documents By Fca Us Llcs Dealership Personnel And Request For Sanctions In The Amount Of 3,060 GRANTED. The noticed deposition location is appropriate under CCP 2025.250. A claim of undue burden is properly made by a motion for protective order or stay. Discovery sanctions of $3,060 are awarded against defendant. Any party who contests a tentative ruling must send an email to [email protected] with a copy to all other par...

Excerpt: ...e strongest case of extrinsic mistake, Mr. Wong has adequately shown all of the required elements to invoke the court's exercise of its discretion to relieve him of the default and default judgment on the grounds of extrinsic mistake. Granting the motion comports with California's strong policy of deciding cases on their merits and plaintiff has not shown that it will suffer any legal prejudice by the granting of the motion. Plaintiff'...

Excerpt: ...aside the default judgment entered against defendant Williams & Burrows, Inc. is granted. Hartford Fire Insurance Company and Nationwide Insurance Co. demonstrated that the Court should invoke its inherent, equitable power to set aside a default judgment on the ground of extrinsic fraud or mistake because they demonstrated a meritorious defense, a satisfactory excuse for not presenting a defense to the original action, and diligence in seeking to...

Excerpt: ...ed on his recent receipt of discovery supporting these allegations. Granting the motion comports with California's liberal policy of allowing amendments to pleadings at any time, particularly where, as here, there is no legal prejudice to cross‐defendants by doing so. The court's previous comments about a last opportunity to amend are fairly construed to cover only matters that Mr. Schuldiner then knew or should have known, not matters ...

Excerpt: ...el Zephyr is an entity that can be sued. Defendants have adequately shown that Hotel Zephyr is not a legal entity and thus it cannot be sued. If Ms. Salas learns information to the contrary, she may seek to amend her complaint or any judgment that she might obtain to add Hotel Zephyr and may do so without regard to any statute of limitations or laches defense due to principles of judicial estoppel. Any party who contests a tentative ruling must s...

Excerpt: ...ion which is based on sufficient facts establishing the absence of any assets attributable to Ms. Elizon that could be paid in settlement of this lawsuit. The papers filed on behalf of Ms. Elizon do not adequately show that there are no assets attributable to Ms. Elizon that could be paid in settlement of this lawsuit. Nor do those papers show that sufficient efforts were made to locate any heirs of Ms. Elizon or determine the scope of her decede...

Excerpt: ...DLSE proceedings is granted in part. All DLSE proceedings are stayed pending the California Supreme Court's decision in OTO, L.L.C. v. Kho. Once the decision in OTO is issued, the parties should meet and confer regarding the impact of that case on this petition. If any of the respondents believe that the California Supreme Court's decision in OTO does not support granting the petition, Uber may re‐notice its petition for a hearing at th...

Excerpt: ...aylor did not make any intentional misrepresentation about the damages the plaintiffs suffered as a result of the Sonoma County fires. Mr. Wiseblood's accusations to the contrary and his efforts to obtain a litigation advantage not only are unfounded and violate norms of civility expected of all counsel, but are also arguably violative of CCP 128.5. Any party who contests a tentative ruling must send an email to [email protected] with...

Excerpt: ...fraud. Defendants' request that the court take judicial notice of the special consent signed on September 8, 2015 is DENIED. The special consent is not explicitly referred to in the first amended complaint and is not the kind of document that a court may judicially notice. Any party who contests a tentative ruling must send an email to [email protected] with a copy to all other parties by 4pm stating, without argument, the portion(s) ...

Excerpt: ...tate and thus it may not take any action to defend itself in this case, including bringing this motion. Nor has Pioneer 74 Lots provided any admissible evidence that Ms. Yip was not validly served with the summons and second amended complaint on its behalf. Any party who contests a tentative ruling must send an email to [email protected] with a copy to all other parties by 4pm stating, without argument, the portion(s) of the tentative rul...

Excerpt: ... mistake. The order was the result of an ex parte application which was heard on or about October 11, 2017 and Mr. Lopez was represented at the hearing by Phil Kilduff. In all events, even if there were any irregularities in the October 23, 2017 order, which there were not, Mr. Lopez suffered no prejudice because he had a full and fair opportunity to respond to the order to show cause initiated by plaintiff John Cowan and appeared and argued agai...

Excerpt: ...overriding interest" per CRC 2.550. Plaintiff has not made a sufficient showing that there is an overriding interest or that it is unable to request a default judgment without publicly disclosing truly confidential and business sensitive information. Any party who contests a tentative ruling must send an email to [email protected] with a copy to all other parties by 4pm stating, without argument, the portion(s) of the tentative ruling...

Excerpt: ...sel per Le Francois v. Goel (2005) 35 Cal. 4th 1094. Mr. Rogers has failed to provide any persuasive reason why he needs the Lees' current address and the Lees have shown that there is at least some risk that their disclosure of their address will needlessly expose them to harassment. The extraordinary manner in which this case has been litigated provides at least some corroboration for the Lees' concerns. Any party who contests a tentati...

Excerpt: ...laint with leave to amend. The Court sustains defendant's demurrer to the seventh cause of action without leave to amend. As to the sixth cause of action, Plaintiff fails to plead specific facts sufficient to establish the elements of fraud. (Small v. Fritz Companies, Inc. (2003) 30 Cal.4th 167, 184; Stansfield v. Starkey (1990) 220 Cal.App.3d 59, 73.) The complaint lacks particularized facts showing that Defendant did not intend to perform t...