Excerpt: ... in substantial compliance with Sections 2031.210, 2031.220, 2031.230, 2031.240, and 2031.280. The Motion for Relief is GRANTED. Defendant's counsel has sufficiently established the failure to properly number the responses one through seven was a result of inadvertence. Plaintiff Richard Abel moves for an order compelling Defendant Sunderland/McCutchan to serve full and complete code-compliant verified responses, without objections, to Plaintiff'...

Excerpt: ...g a corrected Cohen Declaration attaching the referenced Exhibit 4 no later than July 29, 2020,the Motions are GRANTED. HOWEVER, the service award to Plaintiff is reduced to $6,000 and Plaintiffs' attorneys' fees are reduced to $62,500, with a corresponding increase of $ 22,333.33 to the Net Settlement Fund available to the participating members of the Class. As the moving papers acknowledge, the postmark deadline for members of the putative clas...

Excerpt: ...g requests for judicial notice are granted. Plaintiffs filed a First Amended Complaint as a class action, on behalf of a geographically defined area of those who suffered personal and emotional injuries, wrongful death, and loss of personal and real property resulting from wildfires occurring in October 2017. As contained in paragraph (8) of the FAC, the allegations refer to Chapter 10 of the Sonoma County Municipal Codes, at sections 10-1 throug...

Excerpt: ...tiffs consider the response to request No.51 defective. Plaintiffs move the court to compel Defendant Abdallah to provide further responses, a privilege log, and documents in response to request number 51 in Plaintiffs' request for production. When a propounding party is dissatisfied with responses to interrogatories or production requests, that party may move to compel further responses. CCP sections 2030.300, 2031.310. The moving party must mak...

Excerpt: ... Petition seeks to compel the City to set aside its decision of June 17, 2019 in the matter of Resolution No. 2019-095 N.C.S. of the City of Petaluma. The Petition alleges that the City abused its discretion and acted in excess of its jurisdiction in concluding that the Nelsons' proposed project was in compliance with the Woodridge Planned Unit Development (“PUD”), which governs Petitioner's residence and the subject lots, which total 2.7 acr...

Excerpt: ...ers around plaintiffs' homeowners' insurance policy for their home that was destroyed in the 2017 wildfires. Plaintiffs contend that defendant FIE underinsured their home. The insurance contract/policy was reformed after the home was destroyed. Plaintiffs contend the reformation was inadequate and a further reformation should be ordered. The current complaint alleges two causes of action: Insurance Broker Negligence and Reformation of contract/po...

Excerpt: ...ions 2030.300, 2031.310. The moving party must make adequate attempts to meet and confer. Ibid. Generally, once a timely, proper motion to compel further responses has been made, the responding party has the burden to justify objections or incomplete answers. Coy v. Superior Court (1962) 58 Cal.2d 210, 220- 221. A party moving to compel further responses to a production request, however, must demonstrate “good cause" for seeking the items. Code...

Excerpt: ...r into the determination of this motion to compel. Defendants argue that a factual response to No. 4.1 is not required as the "action will not be tendered to any carrier by defendants" and that "defendants are essentially handling their own defense of the case as if they are self- insured." Defendants further state that they are financially able to pay the judgment. Based upon this, Defendants argue that information about insurance is "beyond irr...

Excerpt: ...January 15, 2020. The Motion is GRANTED. I. Procedural History Plaintiffs Asha Prasad, Kevin Lala, and Latchmi Lala (altogether “Plaintiffs”) filed a complaint against defendants Lucas Wharf, Inc. and Toby Skinner for negligence, battery, and premises liability. On August 9, 2019, Lucas Wharf filed a cross-complaint against Plaintiffs as well as Life is Amazing, LLC, alleged to be an alter ego of Plaintiffs, for negligence and “intentional ...

Excerpt: ...ntiff and the Aggrieved Employees to take their meal periods and rest periods in violation of California Law. Defendants also failed to pay Plaintiff and the Aggrieved Employees all earned and unused and accrued vacation time at their final rate of pay at the time of their termination.” (Complaint at ¶13.) Plaintiff also alleges that “[t]hroughout the time period involved in this case, Defendants have implemented policies and practices which...

Excerpt: ...e a cause of action, is SUSTAINED with leave to amend for the reasons explained below. The demurrer to the cross-complaint for uncertainty is OVERRULED for the reasons explained below. Request for Judicial Notice Plaintiff/Cross-Defendants seek judicial notice of the complaint in this action (Ex. 1), a Google Maps aerial photograph form the public domain (Ex. 2), notices and orders and other documents purportedly sent to Defendants/Cross-Complain...

Excerpt: ...erty. (Id. at ¶11.) However, on June 25, 2016, McChesney told Plaintiffs they should contact Janice Cader-Thompson (“Defendant”) because Defendant was McChesney's “advisor.” (Id. at 12.) Plaintiffs spoke with Defendant who explained that she was concerned about certain terms in the sale agreement and she would set up a meeting with McChesney to “try to renegotiate [a] reverse mortgage with the mortgage company…before escrow was close...

Excerpt: ...smissed his cross-complaint. This matter is on calendar for Plaintiffs' unopposed motion for conditional certification of the class and preliminary approval of the class action settlement (the “Motion”). The parties are REQUIRED TO APPEAR to address why payments to the members of the class are being made on a strictly pro rata basis based on weeks worked regardless of their positions and rate of pay, even though members of the class were empl...

Excerpt: ...their complaint, Plaintiffs assert causes of action against Owner, Dede, and Sterling for negligent breach of the implied covenant of habitability (First COA); intentional breach of the implied covenant of habitability (Second COA); nuisance (Third COA); breach of the covenant of quiet use and enjoyment (Fourth COA); negligent violation of statutory duties (Fifth COA); intentional violation of statutory duties (Sixth COA); breach of the implied c...

Excerpt: ... set forth below. Cross-Defendant Loanvest VII, L.P.'s Motion to Expunge Lis Lindens and Request for Attorney Fees GRANTED as set forth below. Motion to Set Aside Default Code of Civil Procedure section 473(b) allows plaintiffs and defendants to set aside dismissals or defaults. This motion must normally be made within a reasonable time, not to exceed six months from the date the order was entered. Code of Civil Procedure section 473(b). Code of ...

Excerpt: ...ative ruling granting Defendants' anti-SLAPP motion, and denying Plaintiff's request for a continuance, was posted and that no appearances were made such that it was adopted without objection. A written order after hearing conforming to the tentative ruling was entered on October 22, 2019. Plaintiff filed an appeal of the order granting the anti-SLAPP motion, but subsequently filed an abandonment of appeal. This matter is now on calendar for the ...

Excerpt: ...ed that he founded SBI but it is presently owned in equal shares by Ron and each of the Individual Defendants, and the FAC sought, among other things, involuntary dissolution of SBI. SBI invoked California Corporations Code (“CC”) § 2000 and an appraisal was ordered per orders entered on December 20, 2016 and January 25, 2017. An appraisal was conducted, and on December 19, 2018 the Court issued an order confirming the appraisal award. This ...

Excerpt: ... exist; and (2) if such agreements are found to exist, the court will GRANT the motions and compel arbitration. The Court also finds it is appropriate to order limited mutual discovery on the issue of the execution of the arbitration agreements in anticipation of the evidentiary hearing. This matter is stayed in all other regards and calendared on the Case Management Calendar on September 22, 2020 at 3:00 p.m. for setting of the evidentiary heari...

Excerpt: ...s “court records” pursuant to Evidence Code section 452(d) is denied. Defendants fail to provide a basis for finding that the transcripts fall under the category of court records. And, even if the Court were to take judicial notice of reporter's transcripts, it would not be of the truth of “facts” therein so the relevance of the transcripts is then questionable. (See e.g., Ross v. Creel Printing & Publishing Co. (2002) 100 Cal.App.4th 736...

Excerpt: ...damages. The Court grants this request. Defendant moves the Court to quash services of the summons and complaint or, alternatively, to set aside the default and judgment. Relying on Code of Civil Procedure section 473(d), it argues that service is void because service failed to comply with the requirements. It also argues that the Court should set aside the default and judgment based on Code of Civil Procedure section 473(b) since it allowed the ...

Excerpt: ...nto a binding arbitration provision covering this dispute and Plaintiff's claims. The Court granted the motion after the May 29, 2019 hearing. Plaintiff contends that after the order for arbitration, the parties stipulated to the selection of retired Judge Scott Snowden (“Snowden”) with JAMS as arbitrator but that Defendants have now withdrawn that consent unilaterally and wish to obtain a different arbitrator. Facts and History of the Arbitr...

Excerpt: ...m bifurcated and tried first before the Court pursuant to Cal. Code Civ. Proc. (“CCP”) §§ 598 and 1048. Plaintiffs' brief contains a lengthy discussion of the merits of their claim, which is outside the scope of the Court's inquiry on this Motion. However, Plaintiffs also oppose the Motion on the basis that the Motion is untimely because it was set for hearing fewer than 30 days before the then-scheduled trial date, as well as on the basis ...

Excerpt: ...ppearing on the face of the complaint, exhibits thereto, and judicially noticeable matters. Code of Civil Procedure section 430.30; Blank v. Kirwan (1985) 39 Cal.3d 311, 318. The grounds for a demurrer are set forth in Code of Civil Procedure section 430.10. One of the grounds, in subdivision (e), is the general demurrer that the pleading fails to state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action. Demurrer for failure to state facts sufficie...

Excerpt: ...ays due to discovery disputes, they were set for May 20, 2020. However, due to a scheduling conflict with Petitioner's attorney, the parties in march 2020 stipulated to a continuance to June 24, 2020. As a result of the stipulation, however, the court order setting the new hearing date required the reply papers to be filed by May 8, 2020. The reply papers on these matters were filed on June 17, 2020. The moving parties claim that this lateness wa...

Excerpt: ...at the time she was evacuated. [Decedent] was taken by City bus to Finley Center in Santa Rosa and, from there, she was at some point moved by Defendants to another facility in Alameda County, with which she was not familiar. Due to the anxiety and stress of Defendants' acts and omissions alleged herein, and the failure of Defendants to provide [Decedent] with the care for which she contracted with Defendants following the fire, [Decedent] passed...