Excerpt: ...in Department 23; With regard to Special Interrogatories 1, 4, 14, and 16, the Court finds that Defendant has provided Code-compliant responses and no further responses are required. With regard to Special Interrogatories 18 and 19, however, the Court is inclined to find that Defendant is entitled to the requested discovery, provided that the responsive information can be limited to avoid the disclosure of personal identifying information of non-...

Excerpt: ...t was not a condition of Plaintiff's employment. The Court further finds, in combination with the voluntary nature of Plaintiff's signing of said arbitration agreement and the PAGA opt-out clause, that said arbitration agreement exhibits a low degree of procedural unconscionability. (Kinney v. United Healthcare Servs., Inc. (1999) 70 Cal. App. 4th 1322, 1329.) The Court also finds that any elements of substantive unconscionability that may exist ...

Excerpt: ...ood faith meet and confer herein. As set forth in Plaintiffs' counsel's reply in support of the motions, Defendant has served supplemental responses to the Plaintiffs' Requests for Production of Documents, Set One, and Plaintiffs anticipate "meeting and conferring on these issues." Counsel are encouraged to engage in substantive meet and confer efforts prior to the next hearing date and are reminded that civil discovery is intended to be self-exe...

Excerpt: ...-Acute Healthcare Center of Modesto and Plaintiff Marcus Nichols. (Souza v. Westlands Water Dist., (2005) 135 Cal. App. 4th 879) The Court further finds that although a party to a contract may rescind a contract if the consent of the party rescinding was given by fraud, when the rights of others have intervened and circumstances have so far changed that rescission may not be decreed without injury to those parties and their rights, rescission wil...

Excerpt: ... December 2019, been put on inquiry, if not actual notice, of defects with her vehicle for her cause of achon for fraudulent concealment to have accrued so as to begin the tolling of the three year statute of limitations on her claim for fraudulent concealment. (Cal. Civ. Proc. Code S 338). The Court therefore finds that Plaintiff's cause of action, which was first filed on January 23, 2023, is time barred. The Court also finds that Plaintiff's c...

Excerpt: ...ponses are confusing and fail to identify whether Plaintiff possesses any materials responsive to the subject requests. Moreover, with regard to the asserted objections, the responses fail to identify the materials subject to the same and fail to provide sufficient information (or a privilege log) for the defense's use in determining whether the claimed privileges apply. Lastly, the responses fall to prov-de adequate support for Plaintiff's claim...

Excerpt: ...art, unopposed; c) Plaintiff Douglass Montgomery's Motion to Compel Responses to Request for Production of Documents, Set One from Defendant Animal Health International, Inc., and Request for Monetary Sanctions — a) The Court finds that Defendant has failed entirely to timely respond to Plaintiff's Request for Form Interrogatories, Set One, propounded on 5/8/23. Therefore, all objections to same are accordingly waived. Plaintiff is therefore en...

Excerpt: ...a Diaz v. General Motors LLC: "This Court once again reminds the Erskine Law Group, Inc. not to cite to unpublished Superior Court cases. (T8G Ins. Service Corp. v. Superior Court (2CM) 96 Cal.App.4th 443, 447, fn2.) Further reminders will come with sanctions." This further reminder comes from an opposition filed three weeks later. The Court suggests that counsel take a stronger interest in the rules governing attorney conduct. The Erskine Law Gr...

Excerpt: ...ute a conflict. (End disclosure). Prior contnuance: The Court begins by noting that at the ex parte hearing on June 8, 2023, continuing the then-set trial date to October, Plaintiffs' counsel agreed with the assertion that liability was and remains a serious issue. Further, at that hearing, all parties represented that the primary delay issue was mediation and that the Court's delayed ruling on the Motion for Summary Judgment contributed to the d...

Excerpt: ...on of the LICL; a First Amended complaint adding a PAGA claim was filed shortly afterward. The subject settlement agreement and proposed notice are attached as exhibits to Attorney Bokhour's declaration in support of the motion herein. The motion is also supported by a declaration from Attorney Falakassa (primarily as to the experience of class counsel and reasonableness of the charged fees) and by a declaration from the representative plaintiff,...

Excerpt: ...e that a person was, at the time a harm was suffered by another, insured wholly or partially against loss arising from liability for that harm is inadmissible to prove negligence or other wrongdoing" l; Bell v. Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft (2010) 181 Cal.App.4th 1108 [Evidence that a person was insured against liability for another person's injury is irrelevant to both the question of liability and the amount of damages for neglige...

Excerpt: ...anted. Responses shall be provided within fifteen (15) days. The request for monetary discovery sanctions is denied without prejudice. The Court finds that a good faith argument regarding the private and/or confidential nature of the discovery sought renders the imposition of discovery sanctions unjust. That said, this is the second motion to compel that Plaintiff's were required to bring and discovery is designed to be self-executing. Repeated d...

Excerpt: ...aintiff's argument that the communications regarding the multiple extensions of time afforded Defendant established Defendant's waiver of objections is not correct; none included an express waiver. (Code Civ. Proc., S 2031.270(c).) Plaintiff's further argument that the initial, objections-only response were tantamount to no response because these were unverified is also incorrect; objections only need be signed by counsel. (Code Civ. Proc., S 203...

Excerpt: ...itatons to Superior Court cases are not permitted. (TBG Ins. Service Corp. v. Superior Court (2002) 96 Cal.App.4th 443, 447, fn2.) There are good reasons for this rule; the Court does not have access to every trial court ruling, and cherry-picking is unhelpful. Further, I have an ethical obligation to be an independent jurist." Despite being aware of this rule, Plaintiff chose to file a brief that re-argued that this court should consider other t...

Excerpt: ...rapy was unnecessary. As to harm, Dr. Schmidt at paragraph 20 asserts as follows: "Ms. McCoy's harm from the administration of neoadjuvant chemotherapy/radiation therapy included incontinence, fatigue, and depression. She claims also to spend at least 4 hours per day on the toilet with diarrhea. None of these conditions she claims to have had prior to being administered the chemotherapy/radiation therapy, according her declaration and these condi...

Excerpt: ...ant Second Amended Complaint, which eliminated the Sixth and Seventh Causes of Acton from the pleading altogether. Therefore, the instant demurrer attacks causes of action to which the defense's previous demurrer was overruled, purportedly on the "new" ground that Plaintiff fails to sufficiently allege exhaustion of administrative remedies, as is required prior to bringing claims based on FEHA. This argument was raised in Defendant's reply brief ...

Excerpt: ...to Police Report No. 90-30042, are necessary and have substantial relevance to the legitimate need of Defendant to defend this action and Plaintiff to prosecute same. (CA ST FAM JUV Rule 5.552 (d)). The court hereby issues a protective order accompanying this authorized disclosure, discovery, or access according to the terms of the parties' proposed protective order. (CA ST FAM JUV Rule 5.552 (d)(8)). b) GRANTED. A record must not be filed under ...

Excerpt: ...ration is that Plaintiff is worried about Defendants' financial stabil-ty. There is no indication that Defendant is in a precarious financial situation or has refused without explanation to pay a disputed claim. To support a writ of attachment Plaintiff needs to allege more than that Defendant owes it money and hasn't paid Plaintiff should submit evidence of Defendant's "past dishonesty, failure to meet obligations, or concealment of assets." Wes...

Excerpt: ...al Interrogatories (Set One) on 12/12/22. Defendant's Moton to Compel Plaintiff's Responses to Special Interrogatories (Set One), is hereby granted. Defendant is accordingly hereby deemed to have waived all objections to same including those based on privilege and work product. (Cal. Civ Proc. 52030.290 (a)). Plaintiff is hereby ordered to provide full, complete, and verified responses to said Special Interrogatories, (Set One) without objections...

Excerpt: ...nd Second Amended Complaint to prevent the application of the Sham Pleading Doctrine against her. The Court therefore disregards the inconsistent allegations in Plaintiff's First and Second Amended Complaints. (Larson v. UHS of Rancho Springs, Inc., (2014) 230 cal. App. 4th 336, 343-344). The Court finds that even if said Sham Pleading Doctrine were not applicable, Plaintiff discovered, or through the use of reasonable diligence should have disco...

Excerpt: ...days of the Court's order. The responses shall conÞrm that Pe
Ÿ
Ÿoner will produce all non-privileged documents responsive to Respondent's demands that are in his possession, custody, or control. Pe
Ÿ
Ÿoner shall also produce all non-privileged documents responsive to Respondent's Demand for Produc
Ÿon of Documents Nos. 1-25 and 27-46 that are in his possession, custody, or control within ten (10) days of the Court's order. Pe
Ÿ
Ÿoner sha...

Excerpt: ...When an application for an order has been made to a judge, or to a court, and refused in whole or in part, or granted, or granted conditionally, or on terms, any party affected by the order may, within 10 days after service upon the party of written notce of entry of the order and based upon new or different facts, circumstances, or law make application to the same judge or court that made the order, to reconsider the matter and modify, amend, re...

Excerpt: ... of litigation." (Hernandez v. City of Stockton, (2023) 90 Cal. App. 5th 1222, 1231) The Court also finds that a government tort claim need not contain the detail and specificity required of a pleading, but need only fairly describe what the entity is alleged to have done; the claims statute should not be applied to snare the unwary where its purpose has been satisfied. (Stockett v. Association of California Water Agencies Joint Powers Ins. Autho...

Excerpt: ...pre-emptive blanket order based on claims of attorney client privilege and or work product privilege. (Cal Code of Civ. Proc.S 2054.420, Nativi v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co. (2014) Cal.App.4th 261, review denied). Accordingly, Plaintiff may proceed with the noticed depositions of Ms. Tudor and Mr. Kouba. Defendant may make any objections it deems necessary during said deposition. The Court declines to prohibit discovery of the documents req...

Excerpt: ...te of judicial judgment. (See, e.g. Britz, Inc. v. Alfa-Laval Food & Dairy Co. (1995) 34 Cal.App.4th 1085, 1106– 1107.) Moreover, the Court Þnds that Pe
Ÿ
Ÿoners have demonstrated their en
Ÿtlement to recover costs in the amount of $17,140, represen
Ÿng the a
©orney's fees awarded by the arbitrator and the Þling fees incurred in connec
Ÿon with this ac
Ÿon. However, the Court lacks power to award arbitra
Ÿon costs that should have bee...