Excerpt: ...nd his law firm, the Hann Law Firm (collectively, "Hann"). The original complaint did not allege when Hann's representation ended. The operative first amended complaint ("FAC"), filed on August 3, 2022 after Minkowski obtained legal representation, similarly states claims for: (1) Breach of Contract (now styled an Attorney-Client Fee Agreement); (2) Legal Malpractice; and (3) Breach of Fiduciary Duty against both defendants. The FAC alleges (at 5...

Excerpt: ...use states that the courts of Indiana shall have "exclusive jurisdiction for deciding legal disputes relating to this limited warranty." Having reviewed the parties' submissions, the court concludes that the forum selection clause here is valid and that a stay is appropriate under section 410.30, subdivision (a), which provides that when a court "finds that in the interest of substantial justice an action should be heard in a forum outside this s...

Excerpt: ...rative complaint on May 26, 2023. The complaint alleges that Pamonag was a dependent adult and inpatient at Grace, a 24- hour skilled nursing facility. (Complaint, 3, 15.) On an unspecified date, and at an unspecified facility, someone on the staff at Grace placed a cap on Pamonag's tracheostomy tube, causing her to stop breathing, suffer brain damage, and ultimately pass away on March 5, 2022. (ld. at "11, 21.) Plaintiffs allege that as a result...

Excerpt: ...mber 28, 2023, alleging a single cause of achon for partition. According to the complaint, Plaintiffs reside in the Philippines and are collectively a tenant-in-common owner of a 50% interest in the Property. (Complaint, '1 3.) The Reyes Defendants are a tenant-in-common owner of the remaining 50% interest. (ld. at 4.) Plaintiffs and the Reyes Defendants acquired their interest in the Property as joint tenants through a Grant Deed recorded with S...

Excerpt: ...t motion. In the alternative, Yau requests reconsideration of the court's order granting the motion to quash under Code of Civil Procedure section 1008. The court GRANTS the motion under section 473(b) and sets a new hearing on Defendants' motion to quash for February 29, 2024 at 9:00 a.m. in Department 10. Defendants argue that relief is unavailable under section 473 and that Yau's current motion is properly one for reconsideration only, but the...

Excerpt: ... Craig urban, co- founded and co-owned: the complaint sets forth two causes of action for professional negligence against Cheng. Cheng now argues—with no explanation as to why this argument is being raised here for the first time, nearly two and a half years after this court (Judge Kirwan) overruled her demurrer to the complaint— that Scott Urban should have named two other parties as defendants in his complaint: Craig Urban and CH Pension Se...

Excerpt: ...C"), filed on June 7, 2021, states four causes of acton: (1) Assault and Battery (against Don only); (2) Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (against Don only); (3) Negligence and Negligence Per Se (against Don only); and (4) Negligent Supervision (against Glenna and Napoleon Francisco (Don's parents) and Kelly Ng (Don's girlfriend)). The FAC alleges that Don sexually assaulted Jane Doe 1 "[flor approximately four years" starting when sh...

Excerpt: ...s where Mummah resided at the outset of the action. On April 22, 2022, Li filed the operative first amended complaint for declaratory relief ("FAC"). On September 2, 2022, Mummah filed an answer to the FAC and a cross- complaint alleging a violation of the federal and California Fair Debt Collection Practices Acts. On March 6, 2023, Li filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings ("JOP motion") versus the answer on two grounds: 1) that the answer...

Excerpt: ... Nguyen (Nguyen's wife) and Nguyen Thi Ngoc Qui (Nguyen's daughter). In addition, these cases include cross- complaints involving several of the same parties, as well as Little Saigon Plaza Sacramento LLC ("Little Saigon"), a former "partnership" between Luong and Nguyen that Luong apparently now controls. In each of these cases, Nguyen previously filed a "Motion to Set Aside Default, Default Judgment, Summary Adjudications, Charging Orders, and ...

Excerpt: ...aches a January 2019 asset purchase agreement that governs the sale of "A Special Place Schools" by Allen to Devinder and Anoma Singh for $285,000.00 (the "Agreement"). (See Complaint, 8-10, Exhibit 1.) According to the complaint, the Agreement provided that Amazing Stars would tender $185,000.00 in cash to Allen and pay the remaining $100,000.00 through monthly installments over a 36-month period at a seven percent annual interest rate (the "Car...

Excerpt: ...led on May 18, 2023, states two causes of action: (1) Violation of the Song-Beverly Act—Breach of Express Warranty, and (2) Fraudulent Inducement—concealment. The complaint alleges that, as part of the purchase of the subject vehicle, Ramadoss entered into an express written contract with Honda, a warranty agreement that is attached to the complaint as Exhibit 1. (Complaint at 9.) The complaint alleges that Honda was aware of the sensing defe...

Excerpt: ... demurrer, filed on December 8, 2023, was untimely, and that it was filed after a default should have been entered by the clerk's office on November 30, 2023. The court disagrees with Zheng's argument that he had until December 12, 2023 to demur or otherwise respond to the complaint. That is based on the erroneous premise that the court's November 16, 2023 order on his (and Ni's) second motion to quash, as well as the Appellate Division's Novembe...

Excerpt: ...ing party. Thuerk now seeks attorney's fees in the amount of $75,037, plus $11,059.15 in costs. The court GRANTS in part and DENIES in part the motion. There is no dispute that Thuerk is entitled to attorney's fees; the only dispute between the parties is over the amount of those fees. The court finds that Thuerk's counsel's billing rates are reasonable for this type of case ($300-$625 per hour). Indeed, the court has found similar rates to be re...

Excerpt: ...TMS. The court finds that MCI has moved promptly to bring this proposed amendment and that granting it will not prejudice any other party. The court grants the motion, except to the extent that purports to add Taylor Morrison of California, LLC ("TMC") as a cross-defendant. This motion was alluded to in the briefing on TMC and TMS's motion for determination of good-faith settlement, which was heard by the court on November 28, 2023. It was the co...

Excerpt: ...ontrol of his assets and companies." (July 20, 2022 Order at p. 1:19-22.) At the most recent hearing, on June 20, 2023, the court heard three motions from the parties. Now before the court are five more motions: (1) Defendants' motion to file under seal documents related to Adult Protective Services ("APS") records; (2) the State Bar of California's motion for a protective order (and request for sanctions); (3) Defendants' motion to compel Lee to...

Excerpt: ...ther. Currently before the court is a motion for "summary interlocutory judgment," filed by Diana on November 1, 2023. II. ACTIONS FOR PARTITION "A co-owner of real or personal property may bring an action for partition." (Code Civ. Proc., S 872.210.) As a general matter, "partition" is "the procedure for segregating and terminating common interests in the same parcel of property." (14859 Moorpark Homeowner's Assn. v. VRT Corp. (1998) 63 Cal.App....

Excerpt: ...ter of Agreement ("LOA") that was allegedly entered into on April 21, 2020. (See Complaint at "1 5-8.) The complaint states three causes of action: (1) Breach of Contract (alleging a failure to pay for materials and finished goods in breach of the LOA); (2) Breach of the Implied Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing (again alleging a failure to pay for materials ordered under the LOA); and (3) Promissory Estoppel (alleging reasonable reliance o...

Excerpt: ...ctober 3, 2023, after the court overruled in part and sustained in part a demurrer to the first amended complaint. The present demurrer concerns Encore's cross-complaint, filed on June 9, 2023, which states causes of acton against Hacker for: (1) Breach of Fiduciary Duty; (2) Conversion; (3) Common Counts; and (4) Imposition of Constructive Trust. The cross-complaint alleges that Hacker was the Chief Executive Officer of Encore from 2010 to 2016 ...

Excerpt: ...BDII codes," vehicle symptom codes," "vehicle component repair codes," "customer complaint codes," and "labor operation codes" for the 2017 GMC Sierra 1500. Martin points out that "Plaintiff's counsel has several hundred cases pending against Defendant and Defendant's counsel, and has litigated hundreds of others" involving these issues. (Memorandum of Points and Authorities at p. 3:2-3.) This court has quite a few of those cases. In two of them,...

Excerpt: ...rties reached a settlement whereby FCA would pay Pewsey $38,000 and allow Pewsey to retain possession of his 2014 Dodge Ram 5500 truck. Pewsey now seeks attorney's fees in the amount of $102,220.50 plus $9,980.90 in costs. The court GRANTS the motion in large part and DENIES it in small part. There is no dispute that Pewsey is entitled to attorney's fees under the Song-Beverly Act; the only dispute between the parties is cwer the amount of those ...

Excerpt: ... to be presented in boilerplate text in Pal's brief—to be completely meritless. The court granted Farmers' moton for summary judgment, negating all of Pal's causes of action, and entered a judgment that was entirely in Farmers' favor. Second, Pal misstates the burden of proof on a motion to strike or tax costs. He argues that because he "properly objected" to the memorandum of costs, "the burden shifted to Plaintiff to introduce evidence that t...

Excerpt: ...tract; (2) Common Counts; (3) Account Stated; (4) Open Book Account; (5) Open 800k Account; and (6) Violation of Prompt Payment Statute (apparently referring to Business & Professions Code section 7108.5, though it is not identified in the body of the complaint). Attached to the complaint as Exhibit A is a copy of a "Subcontract Agreement" between the parties, identifying CPE as the "Contractor" and Arrow as the "Subcontractor." Attached to the C...

Excerpt: ...eferred to herein as "Villa Verde"; the last three defendants are referred to herein as "Sequoia." According to the complaint, filed on July 5, 2023, Getty is an "elder" within the meaning of the Elder Abuse and Dependent Adult Civil Protection Act (Welt & Inst. Code, SS 15600 et seq. (the "Elder Abuse Act")). (Complaint, 1.) She became a resident of Villa Verde, a residential care facility for the elderly on May 4, 2023, after sustaining and rec...

Excerpt: ...T and J5. AT&T has also filed a cross-complaint against '5, Electric Tech, and Lawson Roofing ("Lawson"). Currently before the court is J5's demurrer to AT&T's first amended cross-complaint. A. The underlying Complaint and KY's Cross-complaint On July 14, 2021, Sraon initiated the principal action for breach of contract and negligence against KY and Electric Tech. The complaint alleges that KY and Electric Tech failed, among other things, to "mai...

Excerpt: ...022. It filed the operative First Amended Complaint ("FAC"), adding defendant Link Corporation ("Link"), on March 15, 2023. The FAC states claims for: (1) Fraud in the Inducement (against AMS, Achkar, and various Does); (2) Fraud and Deceit (against AMS, Achkar, and various Does); (3) Breach of Contract (against AMS and various Does); (4) Breach of the Implied Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing (against AMS and various Does); (5) Professiona...

Excerpt: ...partment. Defendant County of Santa Clara does not take any express position on this motion. The City raises two arguments in response to the motion.4 First, the City contends that the police report is protected from disclosure by Penal Code section 11167.5, which is part of the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act ("CANRA") (Pen. Code, SS 11164-11174.3). According to the City, the report at issue was a "substantiated" report of child abuse "tha...

Excerpt: ...ica Fernandez ("Defendants") oppose the motion, but their arguments are without merit. The court therefore GRANTS the motion. Helen, the minor plaintiff, is five years old, and her blood lead level was reported to be 25.1 micrograms per deciliter while living in the home owned and managed by Defendants. According to Plaintiffs, this is 26 times the average blood lead level of a person in the United States. Plaintiffs contend that Helen suffers fr...

Excerpt: ...laintiffs' allegations against the County are based on Government Code sections 835 and 840.2: i.e., a dangerous condition of public property. The County has filed two motions to compel against plaintiff Ayle: (1) for an order requiring substantive responses to supplemental document requests, and (2) for an order requiring Ayle to consent to non-party T-Mobile USA, Inc.'s ("T-Mobile's") production of phone records pursuant to subpoena. The court ...

Excerpt: ... court GRANTS in part and DENIES in part the motion to compel further responses; the court GRANTS the motion to compel compliance. 1. Motion to Compel Further Responses As a general matter, the court finds the vast majority of Applied's document requests to be overbroad, seeking information about not just potentially stolen Applied products, but also nearly all documents relating to legitimate sources and sales of Applied products. As far as the ...

Excerpt: ...ided at the time of the commencement of the action. On April 22, 2022, Li filed the operative first amended complaint for declaratory relief ("FAC"). On September 2, 2022, Mummah filed an answer to the FAC and a cross-complaint alleging a violation of the federal and California Fair Debt Collection Practices Acts ("FDCPA") ("cross-complaint"). The cross-complaint named Li's attorney, Scott A. Flaxman, as a cross- defendant. On March 6, 2023, Flax...

Excerpt: ...") (collectively, "Defendants"). The complaint, filed on May 2, 2023, states 11 causes of action: (1) Breach of Contract (against all defendants); (2) Breach of the Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing (against all defendants); (3) Promissory Estoppel (against all defendants); (4) unjust Enrichment (against all defendants); (5) Nonpayment of Wages (Labor Code, S 201(a)), (alleged against the three corporate entities); (6) unfair Competition (a...

Excerpt: ... causes of action: 1. Failure to Pay Minimum Wages (Lab. Code, SS 1182.12, 1194, 1194.2, 1197, and 1198); 2. Failure to Pay Overtime Wages (Lab. Code, SS 1194 and 1198); 3. Failure to Provide Compliant Meal Periods (Lab. Code, S 226.7); 4. Failure to Provide Compliant Rest Periods (Lab. Code, S 226.7); 5. Failure to Pay All Wages Due at Separation (Lab. Code, SS 201, 202, and 203); 6. Failure to Reimburse Necessary Business Expenses (Lab. Code, S...

Excerpt: ...o on the basis of two other standalone arguments. Having considered the parties' submissions, the court concludes that Baan Thai's arguments are without merit, and the petition should be granted. 1. Delegation of Arbitrability As threshold matter, the parties disagree about whether the arbitration agreement "clearly and unmistakeably" delegates the determination of arbitrability to the arbitrator, or whether that is something the court must decid...

Excerpt: ... to compel responses to interrogatories and document requests on Defendants. For the reasons that follow, the court GRANTS in part and DENIES in part Lippincott's motion for sanctions. The court also GRANTS Lippincott's motions to compel. 1. Motion for Sanctions a. Background This is an action for fraud, breach of contract, wrongful termination, various Labor Code violations, and numerous other causes of achon (21 in total) in which Lippincott al...

Excerpt: ...ely referred to herein as "GM." The original and still-operative complaint, filed on May 18, 2023, states two causes of action: (1) Breach of Contract (based on an "Amended and Restated Enterprise Software Licensing Agreement" entered into on September 28, 2015, as well as an associated order form and purchase order); and (2) Declaratory Judgment (seeking an interpretation of certain portions of the 2015 License Agreement). The complaint alleges ...

Excerpt: ...6.) In 2019 or 2020, a representative from Human Bees, Nick Clark, contacted Jabil to offer its services as an agency with additional staffng capabilities. (ld. at '1 9.) Clark "promised that Human Bees would able to provide more workers to Jabil faster than any other agency because it actively recruited in the local communities and churches." (ld. at '1 12.) At an in-person meeting, Clark assured Jabil that "it would be solely the responsibility...

Excerpt: ...omplaint ("FAC"), filed June 23, 2023, names Kang as the sole defendant. Based on irregularities in the pleadings and the lack of an actual dismissal on file, it is somewhat unclear to the court whether O'Connor Hospital and Santa Clara County Medical Center are still parties to this case. Plaintiffs are representing themselves in this case. II. ALLEGATIONS IN THE FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT The FAC alleges that Kang was Phil's primary care physician...

Excerpt: ...in Bates, and Brynn Ota-Matthews and stated causes of action for: (1) negligence and (2) premises liability against defendants Gilroy Garlic Festival Association, Inc. ("GGFA") and First Alarm Security & Patrol, Inc. ("First Alarm"). Plaintiffs filed a First Amended Complaint on February 27, 2020, with additional plaintiffs— Gabriella Gaus, Harry de la Vega, Barbara V. Aguirre, Alberto Romero, Barbara J. Aguirre, Lesley Sanchez (by and through ...

Excerpt: .... The answer generally denied the allegations and listed 28 affirmative defenses. On January 26, 2023, more than a year and a half later, the court heard and granted a motion to be relieved as counsel by Arevo's attorney. A formal order on the motion issued on March 24, 2023. Currently before the court is Festo's motion to strike Arevo's answer. There is no opposition on file. II. REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE "Judicial notice may not be taken of a...

Excerpt: ...each of the Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing (against all defendants); (3) Prom-ssory Estoppel (against all defendants); (4) Unjust Enrichment (against all defendants); (5) Nonpayment of Wages (Labor Code, S 201(a)), (alleged against the three corporate entities); (6) Unfair Competition (against all defendants); (7) Fraudulent Inducement (against all defendants); (8) Intentional Misrepresentation (against all defendants); (9) Negligent Mis...

Excerpt: ...sion is unconscionable and DENIES the moton. The party challenging a contractual arbitration provision bears the burden of proving that it is both procedurally and substantively unconscionable. (OTO, LL.C. v. Kho (2019) 8 Cal.5th 111, 126.) This may be done on a sliding scale, where the more substantively oppressive the contract term, the less evidence of procedural unconscionability is required, and vice versa. (ld. at pp. 125-126.) In this case...

Excerpt: ...or declaratory relief; but the court also granted the motion in small part (with leave to amend), determining that the seventh affirmative defense was "merely conclusory and contains no supporting facts." (Order at pp. 5:24-26 & 6:16-18.)1 Mummah now brings this motion for sanctions under Code of Civil Procedure section 128.5, arguing that Li's JOP moton was "frivolous," "solely intended to cause unnecessary delay," and brought in "bad faith," bu...

Excerpt: ...ovember 16, 2023 (i.e., in one week). While Jane Doe is presently just under 14 years old, Jane Doe 2 is nine months older and is already 14. Defendant Union School District (the "District") does not oppose Jane Doe's request, recognizing "the mandatory nature of secton 36, subd. (b)." (Opposition at p. 1:24-26.) But the District also argues that the "interest of justice" requires that Jane Doe's case be severed from Jane Doe 2's case and the two...

Excerpt: ...e original complaint, the first amended complaint ("FAC"), and second amended complaint ("SAC"), which were sustained or granted in part. Latessa filed her operative third amended complaint ("TAC") on May 24, 2023. Defendants filed the present demurrer and motion to strike on June 27, 2023. Defendants demur to the first, second, third, sixth, seventh, and eighth causes of action for failure to state facts sufficient to constitute any claim. (Code...

Excerpt: ...ly, "Plaintiffs") have filed causes of action alleging negligence and premises liability, among other claims, against defendants Gilroy Garlic Festival Association ("GGFA"), First Alarm Security & Patrol, lnc„ the City of Gilroy (the "City"), and Century Arms, Inc. ("Century Arms"). On July 23, 2021, Plaintiffs filed the operative pleading, the fifth amended complaint ("5AC"), which alleges the following causes of action: 1. Negligence - agains...

Excerpt: ...art the request for sanctions. 1. Documents Relating to the "Kennedy Investigation" (Requests for Production Nos. 27 & 29) The parties' primary substantive dispute centers on an investigation by the District into allegations of sexual assault committed by defendant Bryan Rios, which Flowers-Haywood refers to as the "December 2017 Kennedy Investigation." According to the District, it retained "outside counsel" to conduct this investigation after a...

Excerpt: ...osition: Taylor has proposed recording the testimony by audio only, rather than stenographically; in addition, he has proposed having the oath administered at a UPS Store in Sunnyvale (where there is a notary public) and then conducting the examination in the lobby of City Hall in Palo Alto. Like the City, defendant Su has also objected to the proposed manner and location of the deposition. The court agrees with the City and Su that the depositio...

Excerpt: ... necessary discovery, KGB has not shown that a terminating sanction is the appropriate remedy here, given its failure to seek less severe sanctions or show why less severe sanctions would be inadequate. 1. Recent Procedural History KGB filed its original motion to compel against the Schimmels on February 7, 2023. One week later, on February 14, 2023, the Schimmels' attorney filed a motion to be relieved as counsel. The motion to compel was heard ...

Excerpt: ...e original complaint on July 14, 2022. John 1 and John Doe 2 filed a First Amended Complaint ("FAC"), adding allegations regarding the latter, on August 31, 2022. Plaintiffs filed the operative Second Amended Complaint ("SAC"), adding allegations regarding John Doe 3, on February 10, 2023. All three Plaintiffs allege that they were sexually abused at different times by defendant Ronald Gardner ("Gardner"), while he was employed by the District. T...

Excerpt: ...oes it contest the factual basis for the amounts sought by defendants (counsel's billing records). Nevertheless, 18T opposes the motion on three grounds, discussed below. 1. The Court's "Schedule of Reasonable Attorney Fees" First, IBT argues that the court has published a "Schedule of Reasonable Attorney Fees" on its website and that defendants' request "is 80 times higher than allowed" by this schedule. The court rejects this argument out of ha...