Excerpt: ...re‐Angel on March 18, 2021. Therefore, despite overlap in the two cases, Filamore‐Angel is no longer “another action pending.” Nevertheless, claims asserted in the Allen matter may be barred under the doctrine of res judicata due to their resolution in the Filamore‐Angel matter. But that is not the ground on which defendant demurred. Even though the underlying issues may be the same—whether claims asserted in Allen extend farther back...

Excerpt: ...may apply to these different work‐environments, but plaintiff is entitled to ascertain the underlying facts. Plaintiff's letter to the LWDA was not restricted to dry depot employees. Plaintiff sought temperature data going back ten years, while defendant proposed a cut‐off date of January 15, 2018. Plaintiff offered a compromise of five years. Five years is reasonable. Even though temperatures pre‐dating the PAGA period (one year before fil...

Excerpt: ...addressed in the motion for which Respondent also asserted objections Page 4 of 12 on grounds of the attorney‐client privilege and the attorney work‐product doctrine. Petitioner appears to concede this point. With respect to the remaining documents at issue, Respondent has failed to meet its burden regarding the privilege. Generally, deliberations of government officials are entitled to a limited amount of protection against public disclosure...

Excerpt: ... Order of Dismissal. The Court also requested briefing as to whether Education Code section 44009 renders the Order of Dismissal moot for purposes of this writ, and supplemental briefing on the application of the Morrison factors. Motion to Augment Code of Civil Procedure section 1094.5, subdivision (e), provides: Where the court finds that there is relevant evidence that, in the exercise of reasonable diligence, could not have been produced or t...

Excerpt: ...lated protective order in this action.” (Motion 15:8‐10.) The Court requires the information to evaluate the fairness of the proposed settlement, even at the preliminary stage. At the least, counsel must lodge evidence of the defendant's financial condition with the Court, conditionally under seal, along with a motion to have the information filed under seal. Counsel should also be prepared to address whether the information should be filed n...

Excerpt: ...artinez, however, has not shown that his interests, or those of the putative class members in the Martinez case, are not adequately represented in this case. As part of the “community of interest” requirement for class certification (and approval of the proposed settlement), plaintiffs in this case must show they adequately represent the class. (Lockheed Martin Corp. v. Superior Court (2003) 29 Cal.4th 1096, 1104.) A class representative, thr...

Excerpt: ...taffing resumes. Substitution of attorney forms are not one of the exceptions. Therefore, at the OSC on December 10, 2020, the substitution of attorney form filed on October 9, 2020, was not present in the physical file. The court consulted the register of actions, however, which indicated that a substitution had been filed on behalf of plaintiff Bubba Likes Tortillas LLC, but erroneously omitted mention of plaintiffs Washington LLC and MTV Holdi...

Excerpt: ...,555.50 before or at the hearing. Absent substantiation, the cost award will be limited to $7,491.94. Administrator Fee: The motion states that administrator's fee is “estimated” to be $6,250.00. The Court preliminarily approved a maximum fee of $6,000.00. The Court cannot award more than $6,000.00, yet the actual fee may exceed that amount. The Court suggests that the additional $250.00 (or other amount charged by the administrator in excess...

Excerpt: ...” (Cholakian & Associates v. Superior Court (McDonold) (2015) 236 Cal.App.4th 361, 368.) The opinion cited by plaintiff, Howell v. Stetefeldt (1886) 69 Cal.153, appears to be premised on an obsolete version of the statute. 3. Merits: Crestwood Behavioral Health, Inc. v. Superior Court (Fragoza) (2021) 60 Cal.App.5th 1069, was published two days after this motion was filed. Crestwood holds that in a PAGA action, “venue is proper in any county ...

Excerpt: ...yet, however, Chavez does not appear to have agreed, at least not formally. Therefore, the motion to stay this case is granted, with the proviso that if Chavez does agree to plaintiff's proposal, that may provide a basis to lift the stay. Counsel can do so by stipulation or, in the absence of a stipulation, plaintiff can file a motion to lift the stay. ...

Excerpt: ... is approved. The amount sought for incentive fees is high, but there were no objections raised by the any of the 555 class members and aggrieved employees. Furthermore, reducing the incentive awards would result in relatively small increases in the individual payments. The Court will schedule a hearing to confirm final distribution of funds approximately one year out. ...

Excerpt: ...mental inspection demands. They cite judicial decisions defining “good cause” in other discovery contexts. The cited decisions, however, did not address these particular Code sections and did not arise from cases designated and handled as complex litigation under California Rules of Court, rule 3.750 et seq. Good cause is a flexible concept that allows for considerable discretion by this Court. (Greyhound Corp. v. Superior Court (1961) 56 Cal...