Judge: Anne Hwang, Case: 23STCV01091, Date: 2024-05-24 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 23STCV01091    Hearing Date: May 24, 2024    Dept: 32

PLEASE NOTE:   Parties are encouraged to meet and confer concerning this tentative ruling to determine if a resolution may be reached.  If the parties are unable to reach a resolution and a party intends to submit on this tentative ruling, the party must send an email to the Court at sscdept32@lacourt.org indicating that party’s intention to submit.  The email shall include the case number, date and time of the hearing, counsel’s contact information (if applicable), and the identity of the party submitting on this tentative ruling.  If the Court does not receive an email indicating the parties are submitting on this tentative ruling and there are no appearances at the hearing, the Court may place the motion off calendar or adopt the tentative ruling as the order of the Court.  If all parties do not submit on this tentative ruling, they should arrange to appear in-person or remotely.  Further, after the Court has posted/issued a tentative ruling, the Court has the inherent authority to prohibit the withdrawal of the subject motion and adopt the tentative ruling as the order of the Court. 

TENTATIVE RULING

BACKGROUND

 Plaintiff Sonia Arevalo (“Plaintiff”) now moves for an order to deem admitted Requests for Admission, Set One and to compel verified responses to Form Interrogatories, Set One, propounded on Defendant Chedraui USA, Inc. (“Defendant”). Plaintiff also seeks monetary sanctions. Defendant opposes. No reply has been filed.  

LEGAL STANDARD

Requests for Admission

Where there has been no timely response to a request for admission under Code of Civil Procedure section 2033.010, the propounding party may move for an order that the genuineness of any documents and the truth of any matters specified in the requests be deemed admitted, as well as for a monetary sanction.¿ (Code of Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subd. (b).)¿ The party who failed to respond waives any objections to the demand, unless the court grants that party relief from the waiver, upon a showing that the party (1) has subsequently served a substantially compliant response, and (2) that the party’s failure to respond was the result of mistake, inadvertence, or excusable neglect.¿ (Code of Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subds. (a)(1)-(2).)¿ The court “shall” grant a motion to deem admitted requests for admissions, “unless it finds that the party to whom the requests for admission have been directed has served, before the hearing on the motion, a proposed response to the requests for admission that is in substantial compliance with Section 2033.220.”¿ (Code of Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subd. (c).)¿ 

Where a party fails to provide a timely response to requests for admission, “[i]t is mandatory that the court impose a monetary sanction under Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 2023.010) on the party or attorney, or both, whose failure to serve a timely response to requests for admission necessitated this motion.”¿ (Code Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subd. (c).) 

Interrogatories

If a party to whom interrogatories are directed fails to serve a timely response, the propounding party may move for an order compelling responses. (Code Civ. Proc. § 2030.290 (b).) Failure to timely respond waives all objections, including privilege and work product, unless “[t]he party has subsequently served a response that is in substantial compliance” and “[t]he party’s failure to serve a timely response was the result of mistake, inadvertence, or excusable neglect.” (Code Civ. Proc., § 2030.290 (a)(1), (a)(2).) The statute contains no time limit for a motion to compel where no responses have been served and no meet and confer is required when a party does not respond to discovery requests. All that need be shown in the moving papers is that a set of interrogatories was properly served on the opposing party, that the time to respond has expired, and that no response of any kind has been served. (Leach v. Superior Court (1980) 111 Cal.App.3d 902, 905-906.)  

If a motion to compel responses is filed, the Court shall impose a monetary sanction against the losing party “unless it finds that the one subject to the sanction acted with substantial justification or that other circumstances make the imposition of the sanction unjust.” (Code Civ. Proc., §§ 2030.290 (c).) Further, “[t]he court may award sanctions under the Discovery Act in favor of a party who files a motion to compel discovery, even though no opposition to the motion was filed, or opposition to the motion was withdrawn, or the requested discovery was provided to the moving party after the motion was filed.” (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1348(a). 

DISCUSSION

Here, Plaintiff asserts that she served Requests for Admission, Set One and Form Interrogatories, Set One on Defendant on September 29, 2023. (Vaziri Decl. ¶ 2, Exh. A.) The responses were due on October 31, 2023. On October 31, 2023, Defendant served unverified responses with only objections. (Id. ¶ 3, Exh. B.) Plaintiff granted multiple extensions to provide substantive responses. But each time, Defendant continued serving objections. Plaintiff has since stopped granting extensions and filed this motion.

Unverified discovery responses are tantamount to no response at all, and are subject to a motion to compel responses (rather than a motion to compel further responses).¿ (Appleton v. Superior Court (1988) 206 Cal. App. 3d 632, 635-36.)¿¿However, “[t]he party to whom the requests for admission (or interrogatories) are directed shall sign the response under oath unless the response contains only objections.” (Code Civ. Proc. §§ 2030.250(a) 2033.240(a) [emphasis added].)

 Here, because Defendant’s responses contain only objections, a verification is not required. Therefore, a motion to compel or deem admitted is not appropriate, but rather a motion to compel further under Code of Civil Procedure sections 2030.300 and 2033.290, which requires the moving party to meet and confer, schedule an informal discovery conference, and file a separate statement. Moreover, even if the Court were to excuse the procedural defects, Plaintiff has not sufficiently addressed Defendant’s objections. 

Therefore, the motions are denied. As a result, the request for sanctions is also denied.

CONCLUSION AND ORDER

Accordingly, Plaintiff’s Motions to deem Request for Admissions, Set One admitted and compel Form Interrogatories, Set One are DENIED.

Plaintiff shall provide notice of the Court’s order and file a proof of service of such.