Excerpt: ...reditors oppose this motion but concede that they will not inquire into any communications between Adams and either J&H or National Fire. Adams moves to join the motion. Because her motion seeks the same relief based on the same facts and law, her request for joinder is GRANTED. Depositions of opposing counsel are presumptively improper and require a showing of "extremely good cause." (Carehouse Convalescent Hosp. v. Superior Court (2007) 143 Cal...

Excerpt: ...es ("ACC") requests to join in Respondents' demurrer. Neither Respondents nor the City has opposed ACC's request to join in the demurrer. For the reasons discussed below, ACC's request for joinder is GRANTED. The joint demurrer is SUSTAINED IN PART WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND as to the PC's second cause of action and OVERRULED as to its third cause of action. JOINDER Although a joinder to another party's motion is not provided for in the Code of Civil...

Excerpt: ...an Campus Communities, American Campus Communities Services, Inc., and American Campus Communities Operating Partnership, L.P. (together, "ACC"). CHF and ACC also demur on similar grounds. SBN opposes all demurrers. For the reasons discussed below, Respondents' demurrer is OVERRULED. CHF and ACC's demurrers are SUSTAINED WITHOUT LEAVE TO AMEND. ELECTRONIC AND PERSONAL SERVICE CHF attempted to serve its moving papers by e mail and U.S. Mail. (See ...

Excerpt: ...umed to be open. (Cal. R. Ct. 2.550(c).) The Court may order records sealed only if it finds "(1) There exists an overriding interest that overcomes the right of public access to the record; (2) The overriding interest supports sealing the record; (3) A substantial probability exists that the overriding interest will be prejudiced if the record is not sealed; (4) The proposed sealing is narrowly tailored; and (5) No less restrictive means exist t...

Excerpt: ...anting trial preference "if necessary." Defendant Westamerica Bank opposes. The motion is GRANTED IN PART. The Court determines that the deadline is September 10, 2020. The parties are ordered to APPEAR, after meeting and conferring regarding the trial date for the Reddish action. PROCEDURAL MATTERS - SERVICE Plaintiffs attempted to serve their motion papers by personal service. (See Proof of Service (filed December 20, 2019).) The filed proof at...

Excerpt: ...14, 2017. The plaintiff in the Dreambuilders Action is owned by Plaintiff Sophie Han, a defendant in the Kim action. No party in the Kim Action has filed papers opposing this motion. Plaintiff Pelorus Equity Group, Inc. opposes the motion. Pelorus argues that its original complaint in this action alleged only that BuildZig submitted draw requests on a loan for work that was not done, and to which BuildZig was not entitled, on a project that ended...

Excerpt: ...thly and keep accurate central payroll records, to recover any penalties at all under the Unfair Competition Law ("UCL") (Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 17200 et seq.), and to recover penalties on behalf of the Labor Workforce Development Agency ("LWDA") under the Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 ("PAGA") (Lab. Code §§ 2698 et seq.) Lancieri opposes both the demurrer and motion to strike. For the reasons discussed below, Performant's de...

Excerpt: ...has not made any of these payments. Since the judgment was entered, H5 was forced to sell two of its three restaurants, and the proceeds were used to pay more senior claimants. The class representatives now move for an Order approving a compromise of the previously approved and entered judgment. Under the terms of the compromise, H5 would only be liable for a single payment of $250,000, which it has already transmitted to the settlement administr...

Excerpt: ...nstitutionality of this statute. See Templo v. State (2018) 24 Cal.App. 5th 730, 736-737. Plaintiff seeks to amend the complaint to allege exhaustion of administrative remedies (amendments not challenged by defendant), and to allege a writ of mandate claim. Defendant opposes the writ claim on the ground of futility. In defendant's view, a writ cannot be alleged because the defendant must enforce a statute and cannot, under section 3.5 of Article ...

Excerpt: ...s that these attorneys violated the May 17, 2017 Stipulated Protective Order (the "Protective Order"), and Code of Civil Procedure sections 177 and 2023.010, et seq. (CCP § 177 ["Every judicial officer shall have power . . . [t]o compel obedience to his lawful orders[.]"]; CCP § 2023.010 [misuse of the discovery process is conduct subject to sanctions].) Specifically, Cordis asserts that these attorneys have used and relied upon documents produ...

Excerpt: ...h action or proceeding, stay the action or proceeding until an arbitration is had in accordance with the order to arbitrate[.]") STANDARD OF LAW "On petition of a party to an arbitration agreement alleging the existence of a written agreement to arbitrate a controversy and that a party thereto refuses to arbitrate such controversy, the court shall order the petitioner and the respondent to arbitrate the controversy if it determines that an agreem...

Excerpt: ..., 2019. Trial is currently set for November 12, 2019. The court may grant leave to a party who has engaged in a timely exchange of expert witness information to "do either or both of the following: (1) Augment that party's expert witness list and declaration by adding the name and address of any expert witness whom that party has subsequently retained. (2) Amend that party's expert witness declaration with respect to the general substance of the ...

Excerpt: ...r's predecessors. The Court determines that Parker has not met its initial burden under Code of Civil Procedure § 437c(p)(2) of demonstrating that one or more elements of Plaintiffs' claims against Parker cannot be established. To the extent that Parker relies on Plaintiffs' responses to Parker's Special Interrogatories, the Court determines that that those responses are not so factually devoid as to demonstrate that Plaintiffs do not have, and ...

Excerpt: ...e are not described. 2. There is insufficient information to evaluate whether there were substantial common questions for class certification. The alleged non-compliant policies are not described (see above) nor is the manner of defendant's allegedly illegal conduct described. 3. The class release appears to be extremely broad, releasing claims that go beyond those alleged in this case. While the named plaintiff may freely release her own claims,...

Excerpt: ..., Inc., et al., Alameda County Superior Court, Case No. RG16843879 STANDARD OF LAW "[T]he power of a court to stay proceedings . . . was inherent at common law and is now vested in the superior courts of this state." (Bailey v. Fosca Oil Co. (1963) 216 Cal. App. 2d 813, 817.) "The case management tools available to trial courts, including the inherent authority to stay an action when appropriate . . . can overcome problems of simultaneous litigat...

Excerpt: ...te of the Complaint. MOTION TO COMPEL "[A] propounding party may move for an order compelling a further response [to interrogatories] if the propounding party deems that . . . [a]n answer to a particular interrogatory is evasive or incomplete . . . [and/or] [a]n objection to an interrogatory is without merit or too general." (CCP § 2030.300(a).) Plaintiff asserts that Defendant's response to Special Interrogatories Nos. 1 and 2- which seek the c...

Excerpt: ...LAW "A demurrer tests the legal sufficiency of the factual allegations in a complaint." (Redfearn v. Trader Joe's Co. (2018) 20 Cal. App. 5th 989, 996.) The Court must determine "whether the complaint alleges facts sufficient to state a cause of action or discloses a complete defense." (Id.) The Court assumes "the truth of the properly pleaded factual allegations, facts that reasonably can be inferred from those expressly pleaded and matters of w...

Excerpt: ...iel Covarrubias, Jeffrey Ellis, Frankie Flores, Marte Formico, David Gamble, Naji Garabet, Gregory Haupt, David Pinheiro, Kevin Scully, and Lisa Vermette's (collectively, "District Manager Defendants") Demurrer is SUSTAINED WITH LEAVE TO AMEND. IT IS ORDERED THAT Plaintiff shall file an amended complaint no later than August 27, 2019. Defendant Guadalupe Diaz's Request for Joinder in Farmers Defendants' Demurrer is GRANTED. District Manager Defen...

Excerpt: ...come the presumption that the plaintiff has selected the proper venue." (Fontaine v. Superior Court (2009) 175 Cal.App.4th 830, 836.) It is Defendant's "burden to demonstrate that the plaintiff's venue selection is not proper under any of the statutory grounds." (Id.) "In opposing the motion to change venue, '[t]he plaintiff may bolster his or her choice of venue with counter affidavits consistent with the complaint's theory of the type of action...

Excerpt: ...ty is such that a preference is necessary to prevent prejudicing the party's interest in the litigation." The standard of proof on a 36(a) motion is preponderance of the evidence. Fox v. Superior Court, (2018) 21 Cal.App.5th 529, 534. CCP § 36.5 further clarifies that, "an affidavit submitted in support of a motion for preference under subdivision (a) of Section 36 may be signed by the attorney for the party seeking preference based upon informa...

Excerpt: ...party's interest in the litigation." The standard of proof on a 36(a) motion is preponderance of the evidence. Fox v. Superior Court, (2018) 21 Cal.App.5th 529, 534. CCP § 36.5 further clarifies that, "an affidavit submitted in support of a motion for preference under subdivision (a) of Section 36 may be signed by the attorney for the party seeking preference based upon information and belief as to the medical diagnosis and prognosis of any part...

Excerpt: ...erriding interest supports sealing the record; (3) [a] substantial probability exists that the overriding interest will be prejudiced if the record is not sealed; (4) [t]he proposed sealing is narrowly tailored; and (5) [n]o less restrictive means exist to achieve the overriding interest." (Cal. Rules of Court, Rule 2.550(d).) MOTION TO SEAL Records may be sealed when there are sufficient overriding interests to overcome the right of public acces...

Excerpt: ...intiff does not dispute defendant's claim that the court action should be stayed pending arbitration. STANDARD OF LAW "On petition of a party to an arbitration agreement alleging the existence of a written agreement to arbitrate a controversy and that a party thereto refuses to arbitrate such controversy, the court shall order the petitioner and the respondent to arbitrate the controversy if it determines that an agreement to arbitrate the contro...

Excerpt: ...because of the general principle that a party who seeks a court's action in his favor bears the burden of persuasion thereon." (Id.) Further, "the party moving for summary judgment bears an initial burden of production to make a prima facie showing of the nonexistence of any triable issue of material fact; if he carries his burden of production, he causes a shift, and the opposing party is then subjected to a burden of production of his own to ma...

Excerpt: ...cts and dangerous conditions at the Property. Amcal Defendants seek to strike the portions of the Fifth Amended Complaint ("FAC") that allege punitive damages and references to the written residential agreements and contractual attorney's fee allegations should their accompanying Demurrer be granted. The Court shall address the punitive damages issue in this ruling, and shall address the other allegations in the ruling on the Demurrer. The Court ...