Excerpt: ...siness in Concord in June 2020. (SAC 97.) Dugas and Stevens each contributed $10,000 towards the formation of the LLC. Dugas received 49% of interest and Stevens received 51% of the interest. (SAC 99.) The parties rented a location for their gym for one year, starting in April 2022. (SAC 910.) Dugas alleges that Stevens paid himself much more than Dugas and that Stevens' payments to himself were unlawful. (SAC "10-18.) The parties had a falling o...

Excerpt: ...driver from April to December 2022, and according to PacPizza, he is still a PacPizza employee. (Higgins Decl. '1 2; Hough Suppl. Decl. 3.) Plaintiff filed a complaint alleging a single cause of achon under the California Private Attorneys General Act, Labor Code S 2699 et seq. ("PAGA") for multiple Labor Code violations he contends he and other aggrieved employees of PacPizza have sustained. PacPizza moves to compel arbitration of Plaintiff's cl...

Excerpt: ...the reason set forth, the motion for summary judgment and motion for summary adjudication of the sixth cause of action are denied. Background Plaintiff and cross- defendant De Petra is the owner of a commercial building located at 911 Moraga Road in Lafayette. Defendant and cross-complainant Persons Plastic Surgery, Inc. ("Persons") is a tenant who leased one of the offices for its plastic surgery center, unit 205 (the "Premises"), under a writte...

Excerpt: ...FFICER: CLARE MAIER HEARING DATE: 10/19/2023 December 1, 2023. The Court has extended the time it normally allows for filing a proposed cross-complaint to give the parties time to consider whether further settlement discussions or mediation would be helpful. No later than October 30, the attorneys are ordered to discuss whether additional mediation would be useful and if so, to begin mediation as soon as possible. Plaintiff and Defendants own pro...

Excerpt: ...motions are granted. Since preliminary approval was granted, the administrator has mailed notices to 7,126 class members. 625 packets were returned by the post office. Follow up resulted in 367 new addresses, leaving 270 non-deliverable. No objections have been received, and only one class member requested exclusion. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant and its affiliates, also sued as defendants here, are in the business of operating McD...

Excerpt: ...istrator's declaration) that when investigation turned up more class and workweeks than previously believed to exist, thereby potentially triggering an escalator clause in the settlement agreement, the response of the parties was to lop off the back end of the class period for which settlement payments will be made — and lop it off substantially tin, from the preliminary approval date (spring 2023) back to July 25, 2022. While the Court obvousl...

Excerpt: ...ses, leaving 4 nondeliverable. No objections out have been received, and only one class member has opted out. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant is the parent of Hand & Stone Massage and Facial Spa. Plaintiff was employed with defendant as a neuromuscular therapist in the spring of 2021, though only briefly. The original complaint was filed on October 26, 2021. A PAGA claim was added by amendment in January 2022. The settlement will cre...

Excerpt: ...e preliminary approval was granted, the administrator has mailed notices to 19,854 class members. 1,086 packets were returned by the post office. Follow up resulted in 605 new addresses, leaving 464 non-deliverable. No objections have been received, and only two class members have requested to opt out. A. Background and Settlement Terms Defendant operates a number of Taco Bell restaurants throughout the area. Plaintiffs were employed at various t...

Excerpt: ...ying the motion said that any future motion should address defendant's claim that the proposed causes of action are inappropriately based on privileged information that Plaintiff is precluded from using in this litigation. Plaintiff filed this renewed motion on August 25, 2023. Defendant Northgate filed an opposition on October 4, 2023 in which it argued, among other things, that: (1) Plaintiff omitted privileged Exhibits 15 and 31 from the propo...

Excerpt: ...23 For the following reasons, the Motion is granted. Standard Code of Civil Procedure ("CCP") SS 437c(c) provides, in relevant part: The motion for summary judgment shall be granted if all the papers submitted show that there is no triable issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. Secton 437c(p)(1) provides: A plaintiff or cross-complainant has met his or her burden of showing that there...

Excerpt: ... defendant has failed to pay this amount under the parties' agreement. These facts are supported by the declaration of Raymond Cordova, and the supporting exhibits included with it. No opposition has been filed by defendant. Standard A motion for summary judgment shall be granted if all the papers submitted show that there is no triable issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. (Code Civ...

Excerpt: ...The Court, having reconsidered its August 2, 2021 Order granting Ford's motion to compel arbitration, determines that Ford's motion for order compelling arbitration should be denied for the reasons set forth. The prior August 2, 2021 Order compelling arbitration is vacated. The Court sets a case management conference for 8:30 a.m. on December 28, 2023. Plaintiff shall give notice of the CMC. Background Plaintiff filed a complaint against Ford Mot...

Excerpt: ...nt moves for summary judgment on the grounds that Plaintiff failed to comply with the Government Claims Act. For the followng reasons, the Motion is denied. Judicial Notice Defendant's request for judicial notice is granted. (Evid. Code SS 452, 453.) Legal standard SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 36 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CLARE MAIER HEARING DATE: 10/12/2023 code of Civil Procedure ("CCP") SS 437c(o)(1) and 43...

Excerpt: ... Cross-complaint ("FACC") "1 1, 2.) In the main action, Johnson has sued Fong to recover the amount he paid Fong based on what Johnson contends was defective work. In his FACC, Fong alleges that Johnson came to Fong's residence and demanded Fong pay him money or Johnson would inform Fong's neighbors that Fong was a convicted felon who served a prison sentence in connection with a crime involving moral turpitude and dishonesty. (FACC 3-8, 10, 12- ...

Excerpt: ...25, 2022.) Plaintiffs confirm that Rodriguez is not named as a defendant on the first through third causes of action in light demurrer. Plaintiffs' request for monetary sanctions is denied. This motion would not have been necessary if Plaintiffs had complied with CRC 2.112 in drafting their third amended complaint. 19. AM CASE NUMBER: C20-01330 CASE NAME: Hurtado v. HEARING ON DEMURRER TO COMPLAINT AND MOTION TO STRIKE FILED BY: SUTTER HEALTH AND...

Excerpt: ...COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 18 JUDICIAL OFFICER: DANIELLE K DOUGLAS HEARING DATE: 10/09/2023 by filing its complaint on April 19, 2021. on November 2, 2022, Defendant Krishan Kalra, Ph.D ("Defendant" or "Dr. Kalra") filed a crosscomplaint. The Cross- Complaint alleged ten causes of action: (1) breach of contract; (2) breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing ("GFFD"); (3) breach of implied warranty; (4) professional n...

Excerpt: ...he same statutes for their requests for sanctions, the Court will address both Motions together. For the reasons set forth below, the Motions are granted as outlined below. Procedural Background Plaintiff filed the initial Complaint in this matter on September 18, 2018. The operative Second Amended Complaint was filed on June 13, 2019. Defendants filed their motion for summary judgment or, in the alternative, summary adjudication ("MSJ") on June ...

Excerpt: ...a multi-vehicle car accident in April 2021. Claimant is the insured under a motor vehicle policy with Respondent State Farm Insurance with uninsured motorist coverage. Claimant requested that State Farm arbitrate the uninsured motorist claim in a letter from his counsel dated March 23, 2023. (Chang Decl. Exh. 1.) State Farm thus far has not agreed to schedule an arbitration. Analysis A. Threshold Issue — Existence of An Arbitration Agreement Wh...

Excerpt: ...OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 36 JUDICIAL OFFICER: CLARE MAIER HEARING DATE: 10/12/2023 the MS] is granted. Factual and Procedural Background Defendant opened an American Express Platinum Card account on September 17, 2016 ending in 1004. UMF 1. The terms and conditions for use of the Account are governed by a Cardmember Agreement. UMF 2. American Express sent Defendant a copy of this Agreement along with the physical...

Excerpt: ...stments v. Decher Young, QI-0258. ("C21 case") In the C21 case, Decher Young was the defendant and the attorney for Mr. Young, Mr. Levin, represents Mr. Young in both cases. The attorneys for Steven Pinza was the same counsel in the C21 case. Neither party asked this court to take Judicial Notice of the C21 case, but as the C21 case is relevant to the motion to recover costs of service and service by publication, the Court does so on its own moti...

Excerpt: ...urt may dismiss the complaint as to that defendant when: Except where Secton 597 applies, after a demurrer to the complaint is sustained with leave to amend, the plaintiff fails to amend it within the time allowed by the court and either party moves for dismissal." CCP section 597 applies to trials of defenses and is not applicable to this action. The Court sustained Defendant's Demurrer to Plaintiffs' First Amended Complaint with leave to amend ...

Excerpt: ...f shall file any amended pleading by October 23, 2023, or shall file and serve notice of Plaintiffs election not to amend by that date. Background The background of the case, causes of action, and relevant factual allegations of the first amended complaint ("FAC") are set forth in the concurrent ruling on the defendants' demurrer to the FAC. Legal Standards Applicable to Motion to Strike Punitive Damages The Court may strike allegations that are ...

Excerpt: ...allows the Project's Land use Permit to remain in place and fails to enjoin Project operations pending the County's compliance with CEQA. "CECA, through the Public Resources Code, allows a trial court to leave project approvals in place. After a court finds a CEQA error, the court has three options: void a decision in whole or part; suspend certain project activities; or take other specified actions. (Pub. Resources Code, S 21168.9, subd. CEQA do...

Excerpt: ...tter on June 5, 2023. It set forth fourteen causes of action against defendants George and Bellerny Raygoza. On August 11, 2023, Defendants filed their Joint Answer to unverified Complaint consisting of a general denial as well as forty-five affirmative defenses. Plaintiff filed the instant demurrer to the Answer, demurring to forty-three of those affrmative defenses. The two not demurred to are the affirmative defenses for: statute of limitation...

Excerpt: ...on 1). Plaintiff also sued Rollamatc for the failure to prevent harassment / hostile work environment, retaliation (FEHA and Labor Code sections 1102.5 and 6130) and wrongful terminaton (causes of action 2-6.) SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, CONTRA COSTA COUNTY MARTINEZ, CA DEPARTMENT 21 JUDICIAL OFFICER: JILL C FANNIN HEARING DATE: 10/11/2023 Defendants demur to causes of action 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 based on the failure to allege facts sufficient to s...