Excerpt: ...enas by Individual Defendant served upon non-party Community First Credit Union (“Community”) under California Code of Civil Procedure (“CCP”) § 1985.3. The Motion is DENIED. I. Request for Judicial Notice The court notices the documents not for the truth of their contents, but for the previous statements of Plaintiff Prasad, to the degree they are relevant to this motion. II. Governing Law Although Code of Civil Procedure section 1985(b...

Excerpt: ...n violation of B&P Code § 17200, et seq; 4) negligence; 5) breach of written contract; 6) breach of oral contract; 7) intentional infliction of emotional distress; and 8) negligent infliction of emotional distress. This matter is on calendar for the motion by Moving Defendant to compel arbitration pursuant to the California Arbitration Act, Cal. Code Civ. Proc. (“CCP”) § 1280 et seq. (the “CAA”), and for a stay, on the grounds that Plai...

Excerpt: ...erence to the board, as referee, of any or all issues involved in the suit.” (Wat. Code, § 2000.) After the reference and the board's investigation, the board prepares a draft report setting forth “such findings of fact and conclusions of law as my be required by the court's order of reference” and which “may contain such opinion upon the law and facts as it deems proper in view of the issues submitted.” (Wat. Code §§2011, 2012.) Aft...

Excerpt: ...��), claiming that he and Defendant Kathleen McCormick (“Defendant”) each own a 50% interest in the Property. He complains that he paid for the purchase of the Property with his own money before transferring title to himself and Defendant as joint tenants but that he filed a Declaration of Severance of Joint Tenancy and left the Property as a result of Defendant's conduct. He adds that he has paid for the Property expenses even though Defenda...

Excerpt: ...tiffs allege that the Property in particular suffered from a mold infestation which damaged Plaintiffs' personal property and harmed Plaintiffs themselves, Plaintiffs informed Defendants and asked Defendants to remedy the situation, and Defendants instead evicted Plaintiffs and improperly retained their security deposit. Defendants filed a cross-complaint against Plaintiffs for breaching the lease agreement by failing to maintain the Property as ...

Excerpt: ...tly. With respect to the demurrer itself, Defendants demurrer to all causes of action in the complaint on the grounds there is a defect or misjoinder of parties; the complaint fails to allege sufficient facts to constitute a cause of action against Defendants; and the complaint is uncertain. Specifically, Defendants contend that the complaint fails to make any specific allegations against Defendants outside a vague reference that they are Hector'...

Excerpt: ... resolution of Ramos II. In the second motion, Defendant contends that Plaintiffs are actively preventing enforcement of the judgment in this case by failing to comply with the Court's Charging Order and by improperly transferring assets out of their own names and into their entities. Thus, Defendant seeks the following relief (A) for an assignment order assigning Plaintiffs' interest in all rents, contracts, income, commissions, and all rights a...

Excerpt: ... Court's July 1, 2021 Order denied the Defendant's request to continue the trial date but shortened the time for a motion and set the hearing for September 10, 2021. The Court also stated that “[a]ny additional moving papers shall be filed and served by 7/16/21.” (Ibid.) Defendant did not file its moving papers until August 10, 2021, over three weeks late. Defendant has provided absolutely no explanation why it failed to comply with the Court...

Excerpt: ...y in the civil action and in a representative capacity in the probate action. Tanner also avers the two actions involve the same or similar claims, related to the same underlying property, and seeks the same relief based on the same evidence. Tanner concludes that keeping these cases on parallel tracks in different departments will risk inconsistent rulings and will expend unnecessary resources of the parties and the court. In her opposition to t...

Excerpt: ...he attorney-client privilege or the common-interest doctrine. (See, Code Civ. Proc. §2031.210, et seq.; see also, Costco Wholesale Corp. v. Superior Court of Los Angeles (2009) 47 Cal.4th 725, 733; Citizens for Ceres v. Superior Court (2013) 217 Cal.App.4th 889, 914.) Accordingly, Defendant is ORDERED to provide code-compliant responses and produce all non-privileged documents responsive to requests 1-30 within twenty (20) days of this hearing d...

Excerpt: ...mend his complaint to cure the defects explained below, the Court will sign the proposed order lodged with the motion, WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND. This case arises from allegations of an unlawful non-judicial foreclosure sale of Plaintiff's property at 3520 Deer Meadow Lane, Occidental, CA. (Complaint at ¶11.) Plaintiff alleges that Defendants, who include the lender, servicer, agents, and others have improperly foreclosed on a loan and promissory n...

Excerpt: ...On or about June 28, 2016, McChesney backed out of the deal and litigation ensued between Plaintiffs and McChesney for breach of contract and specific performance. (Id. at ¶17.) That case was heavily litigated and on February 13, 2019, Plaintiffs dismissed their complaint against McChesney, with prejudice, as to all parties and all causes of action. Nine months after Plaintiffs dismissed their action against McChesney, Plaintiffs filed the prese...

Excerpt: ...merely a procedural requirement,” but is a condition precedent to the claimant's ability to maintain an action against the public entity. (Shirk v. Vista Unified Sch. Dist. (2007) 42 Cal.4th 201, 209.) The Code states that “no suit for money or damages may be brought against a public entity on a cause of action for which a claim is required to be presented…until a written claim therefor has been presented to the public entity and has been a...

Excerpt: ...d potential delays at the trial and appellate levels, arbitral finality is a core component of the parties' agreement to submit to arbitration.” (Richey v. AutoNation, Inc. (2015) 60 Cal.4th 909, 916.) “[I]t is the general rule that parties to a private arbitration impliedly agree that the arbitrator's decision will be both binding and final” and thus they agree to bear the risk of an arbitrator's mistake “in return for a quick, inexpensi...

Excerpt: ...ranted on February 10, 2021 and is apparently already set for arbitration with JAMS on March 1-3, 2021. This matter involves the Petitioner's representation of Respondent in the appellate portion of the dissolution matter, which is subject to a separate legal services agreement, also with an arbitration provision. The legal services agreement at issue here was effective May 5, 2013 and includes an arbitration provision which states in part that �...

Excerpt: ...ng taken against him or her through his or her mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect” and any such “[a]pplication for this relief…shall be made within a reasonable time, in no case exceeding six months, after the judgment, dismissal, order, or proceeding was taken.” (Code Civ. Proc. §473(b).) Discretionary relief under section 473(b) is “applied liberally where the party in default moves promptly to seek relief, and the...

Excerpt: ...responses to the subject special interrogatories and pay $1,480 in sanctions to Defendants within twenty (20) days of service of the Court's final ruling. “California law provides parties with expansive discovery rights.” (Lopez v. Watchtower Bible & Tract Society of N.Y., Inc. (2016) 246 Cal.App.4th 566, 590-591.) Specifically, the Code provides that “any party may obtain discovery regarding any matter, not privileged, that is relevant to ...

Excerpt: ... serve a second amended complaint. In this lemon law action, Plaintiff Raymond Fields (“Plaintiff”) purchased a “new 2011 Chevrolet Silverado 2500” from Victory Chevrolet in Petaluma, CA on August 24, 2012. (First Amended Complaint at ¶9.) “Express warranties accompanied the sale of the vehicle to Plaintiff by which [Defendant] undertook to preserve or maintain the utility or performance of Plaintiffs vehicle or to provide compensation...

Excerpt: ...e actions despite knowing that the alternations were likely to interfere with the natural flow of water across the parties' properties. Plaintiffs allege that Defendants took these actions “intentionally, maliciously, and with knowledge of the adverse consequences.” Plaintiffs' complaint asserts causes of action for private nuisance, trespass, and negligence, and seeks punitive damages. Defendants move to strike the prayer for punitive damage...

Excerpt: ...end, or revoke the prior order. Code of Civil Procedure §1008(a). Timeliness is not an issue. The motion for reconsideration must be brought within 10 days of the service of notice of the entry of order. Code of Civil Procedure § 1008. Plaintiff filed her motion 4 days before the Court issued the final order and an amended notice of motion 10 days after the Court issued the final order. A party seeking reconsideration must first demonstrate new...

Excerpt: ...s broad discretion to permit or deny an amendment of the pleadings “[i]t is well established that California courts have a policy of great liberality in allowing amendments at any stage of the proceeding so as to dispose of cases upon their substantial merits where the authorization does not prejudice the substantial rights of others.” (Board of Trustees v. Superior Court (2007) 149 Cal.App.4th 1154, 1163; see also, Lincoln Property Co., N.C....

Excerpt: ...Court need not address Defendant's remaining, largely factual, arguments. This case arises from a contract “for the installation of a Dammann Risohorse Ebb and Flow System (“Risohorse System” or “System”) as part of a new [horse] arena (“Arena”) Plaintiff was building on her private property (“Subject Property”).” (FAC at ¶7.) “The System is a product designed to maintain consistency in the footing of a horse [A]rena by add...

Excerpt: ...f to provide the proposed answers for review and approval prior to the deposition. Plaintiff moves the Court to compel Defendant John Casey (“John”) to attend deposition under certain conditions or, as Plaintiff says in the moving papers, “to establish some reasonable and humane manner to take a sworn statement from [him] before he dies.” In general, under the Discovery Act a party has the automatic right to depose all other parties. See,...

Excerpt: ... other managing member and owner of CQ, has breached his loyalty and business obligations to Plaintiffs as set forth in CQ's Operating Agreement (“the Agreement”). Clay and Quiles are allegedly founders and, currently, the only owners and co- managers of CQ, which has its principle place of business in Cotati and allegedly owns a patent on a folding doorstop called “The Pocket Stop” (“the Doorstop”). Allegedly, Clay is a 53.3% member ...

Excerpt: ...gatories, and Form Interrogatories (Sets One); after an extension, Defendants provided largely identical responses on October 15, 2019; Plaintiffs found these deficient and Defendants provided supplemental responses on December 9, 2019; Plaintiffs found these still to be deficient and raised the issue with Defendants, warning of a motion to compel which Plaintiffs brought and which was heard on May 29, 2020; the Court granted the motion as to com...

Excerpt: ...ith Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1. The order with details supporting this order will be filed under seal. The order containing the ultimate rulings will not be under seal and will provide reference to the full order under seal. Plaintiff complains that in 1978 when he was a minor, he was sexually molested by Father Gary Timmons (Timmons), a priest of Defendant Doe 1, running youth activities at a summer camp of Defendant Doe 2. Plaintiff ...

Excerpt: ...ion 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 of Civil Procedure section 2031.310(b)(1). This requires a showing that the items are relevant to the subject matter of the litigat...

Excerpt: ...djudication of one or more causes of action, affirmative defenses, claims for damages, or issues of duty if the party contends that the cause of action has no merit or that there is no defense to the cause of action, or that an affirmative defense has no merit, or that there is no merit to a claim for damages “as specified in” Civil Code section 3294, or that a party did or did not owe a duty. Code of Civil Procedure section 437c(f)(1). As th...

Excerpt: ...certain, as set forth below. The Arguments Defendants demur to the complaint on the grounds that it fails to state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action and is uncertain. They contend that the default under the terms of the Note occurs if they fail to make required payments and that no allegation shows that any payment occurred after February 2, 2012. This, they claim, indicates that the four-year statute of limitations under Code of C...

Excerpt: ...ailure on the part of the County of Sonoma properly to perform and fulfill its responsibility for road condition, design, inspection, maintenance, and repair, and otherwise, was the direct and proximate cause of those conditions,” Plaintiffs did not assert a separate cause of action against the County at that time. On July 13, 2018, Plaintiffs filed a First Amended Complaint which added a cause of action for general “negligence” against the...

Excerpt: ...suant to Code of Civil Procedure sections 435 and 436 and seeks to strike Plaintiff's prayer for punitive damages in the FAC at 18:1-2 and 19:11-12. Plaintiff filed a late opposition to both the demurrer and motion to strike on May 20, 2019, which Defendant apparently did not receive before he filed his reply, on May 22, 2019. In the oppositions and supporting declarations, Plaintiff concedes that she has early onset Alzheimer's Disease and she h...

Excerpt: ...released half the fire insurance proceeds to defendant Mary Durand pending trial on plaintiff's claim that he holds an insurable interest in the proceeds along with Ms. Durand. It was undisputed that Ms. Durand was entitled to at least half the proceeds. Plaintiff now moves to have the remaining half of the insurance proceeds released to him pending trial. However, the parties are not similarly situated. Plaintiff was a named insured on the polic...

Excerpt: ...prevailing” party is the party who recovered greater relief in the action on the contract. Here, plaintiff recovered greater relief and achieved his litigation objectives by reducing the May 2016 promissory note amount, cancelling the April 2016 promissory note, expunging the short form deed of trust and assignment of rents recorded against the Spring Street property and expunging the notice of default recorded against the County Manor property...

Excerpt: ...ffs move to compel further responses to their second set of requests for production of documents numbers 44 through 50, 79 through 81 and 99. Request Numbers 44-50 seek documents “evidencing, describing, or tracking repair presentations by owners of 2013 Kia Sorento vehicles in which the dealer” found evidence of problems oil sludge, oil contamination, engine seizing, excessive oil consumption, engine knocking, engine failure or engine rattle...

Excerpt: ...arily on objector Susan Mills' deposition testimony in which she states she met with Norton and Johnston on decedent's behalf, petitioners argue that decedent was the client of Norton and Johnson. Norton contends that Mills is her client, but Johnston appears to agree with petitioners. Johnston states in his declaration that: “It is my belief that Mills was the authorized representative of Silvestri at the time I met with her. Further, it is my...

Excerpt: ...posed requests for judicial notice are granted. [1] Cross-complainant Sunderland McCutchan, LLP (“McCutchan”) represented Abel and other plaintiffs in Sonoma County Superior Court case no. SCV-245738. Abel later filed this legal malpractice action against McCutchan. McCutchan then filed a cross-complaint against Abel alleging that plaintiffs in SCV-245738 failed to pay McCutchan $75,136.82 in attorney fees plus 15% of all amounts collected on...

Excerpt: ...on the same subject: 13. During or about August of 201 5, RAMOS requested a written agreement in furtherance of the oral agreement, and to memorialize the terms of the Option Agreement in writing. The parties drafted a written agreement signed by JONATHAN RAMOS and WALLAHAN hereinafter referred to as the LEASE OPTION; WALLAHAN kept the only copy, saying that before delivery to Plaintiffs, he would need to have his CPA and Attorney look it over. F...

Excerpt: ... form interrogatories, special interrogatories and requests for production. In the opposition, petitioner agreed to amend his responses to Form Interrogatories, Nos. 2.1, 2.2 and 2.6. As to the remaining, disputed discovery responses, the court rules as follows: Form Interrogatories Petitioner objected to form interrogatories, nos. 12.1 (witnesses), 12.4 (photographs, films, videotapes), 12.5 (diagrams, reproductions, or models) & 12.7 (scene ins...

Excerpt: ...Plaintiffs argue they have adequately alleged facts supporting application of the delayed discovery rule, as well as fraudulent concealment and/or equitable estoppel. Plaintiffs further assert they have stated facts sufficient to allege their fraud causes of action. Plaintiffs also argue the economic loss rule does not bar their fraud claims. Accepting the factual allegations as true, the court finds the fraud causes of action are not time-barred...

Excerpt: ...0. Plaintiff's medical insurer has purportedly imposed a lien for approximately $200,000. In cases in which a judgment is obtained against a public entity defendant, the court has discretion to reduce pre-trial benefits that fall under the collateral source rule by up to one-half of the net recovery. (Gov. Code, §985, subd. (f) & (g).) “Government Code section 985 represents a compromise between public entities, which would like to have juries...

Excerpt: ...d does not appear to actually seek further responses but moves to “strike” two general objections made in the requests for admissions. As above in relation to the form interrogatories, Mary Durand argues plaintiff waived any objections by serving untimely responses. The court agrees that plaintiff has waived objections to these requests for admissions. Special Interrogatories, First Set Special interrogatories, nos. 3, 4 & 5 seek information ...

Excerpt: ...in terminating sanctions. The court set the matter on this calendar to review compliance. The parties have filed documents in preparation for this hearing; which the court has reviewed. It appears that Plaintiff is largely in compliance with the orders of the court, however, Plaintiff's responses to the written discovery are inadequate. As pointed out by Defendant, Plaintiff's responses interpose objections, which were waived by her untimely resp...

Excerpt: ...which appears doubtful, or which does not appear to be proper on its face. [Citation.] However, “[i]f the items appear to be proper charges, the verified memorandum is prima facie evidence that the costs, expenses and services therein listed were necessarily incurred by the defendant [citations], and the burden of showing that an item is not properly chargeable or is unreasonable is upon the [objecting party].” [Citations.] The court's fi...

Excerpt: ...nth. Pursuant to the TRO plaintiffs have been paying that monthly sum, but they are not residing at the property because it required post-fire repairs to make it habitable. Plaintiffs assert – at least in their moving papers – that the home is now habitable and seek a mandatory preliminary injunction requiring Wallahan to let them move back in pending resolution of their claims at trial. As cited in Davenport v. Blue Cross of California (1997...

Excerpt: ...r (2016) 2 Cal.App.5th 1092, 1106.) However, the response was untimely served and filed, therefore, the court has not considered it. “In order to comply with the purpose of expeditious resolution of disputes through arbitration, time limits in which to challenge arbitration awards must be strictly enforced.” (Knass v. Blue Cross of California (1991) 228 Cal.App.3d 390, 395.) Per Code of Civil Procedure section 1290.6, the response must be ser...

Excerpt: ...13. (Burnstad Decl., ¶5, Exh. 5.) The court's order specifically retained jurisdiction over the parties under Code of Civil Procedure section 664.6 to enforce the settlement. Defendant defaulted on monthly payments required under the settlement agreement. (Burnstad Decl., ¶7.) The settlement agreement provides that upon default, the unpaid balance, less any amount paid prior to default shall be accelerated and become due and payable. (Burnstad ...

Excerpt: ...led in the two cases is granted. On the merits, the court is inclined to grant the motion. Consolidation appears proper under Code of Civil Procedure section 1048 as the actions involve common questions of law and fact. Additionally, the motion is timely made, consolidation would not make the case too complex for the jury and it would not prejudice the parties. However, the motion is procedurally defective because it fails to substantially comply...

Excerpt: ...Defendant contends it was not obligated to reimburse Plaintiff because California regulations provide an exception to the reimbursement rule if the employee's wages are at least two times the minimum wage. Plaintiff moves to compel further responses to his Requests for Production of Documents Nos. 1-9. The court finds Plaintiff's motion is well-taken as CRC's responses are not code- compliant. Specifically, as argued by Plaintiff, CRC has failed ...

Excerpt: ...ounty now moves for attorney fees pursuant to Government Code section 25845(c) and Sonoma County Code section 1-7(b). The County contends it is the prevailing party and seeks a total of $38,964.50 in attorney fees. Those fees were incurred between December 2016 and April 2018. Defendant opposes the motion. He argues “the issue of prevailing party is not clear, and can be equally claimed by defendant.” (Opposition, 2:10-11.) Defendant further ...

Excerpt: ...n that she was wrongfully terminated and suffered retaliation from Aurora for internal and external whistleblowing related in part to hospital staffing levels. She also alleges workplace health and safety violations under California's OSHA laws through the enforcement mechanism of the Private Attorneys General Act in the Labor Code. Defendants contend Plaintiff's job performance at Aurora was inadequate, she did not demonstrate adequate knowledge...